carrion

noun

car·​ri·​on ˈker-ē-ən 

ˈka-rē-

: dead and putrefying flesh

Vultures live chiefly on carrion.

also : flesh unfit for food

Examples of carrion in a Sentence

Vultures live chiefly on carrion.

Recent Examples on the Web

Their pungent odors attract not only the carrion insects – beetles and flies normally drawn to decomposing meat – that pollinate the plants, but also crowds of onlookers curious about the rare, elaborate display and that putrid scent. —Delphine Farmer, The Conversation, 16 Sep. 2025

The small white plane circled — the stadium, the team, the season — like a vulture circling carrion. —Miami Herald, 14 Sep. 2025

In the absence of vultures, carrion accumulated and fueled a rise in smaller scavengers, namely feral dogs and rats. —Jonathan Lambert, NPR, 11 July 2025

This striking bird, a relative of the crested caracara, was a scavenger and opportunistic hunter, feeding on seabird eggs, carrion, and small animals. —Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 29 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English caroine, from Anglo-French caroine, charoine, from Vulgar Latin *caronia, irregular from Latin carn-, caro flesh — more at carnal

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing carrion

• carrion crow

Rhymes for carrion

• arion
• clarion
• hereon
• marian
• parian
• agrarian
• aquarian
• barbarian
• bavarian
• bulgarian
• cimmerian
• hungarian

Kids Definition

carrion

noun

car·​ri·​on ˈkar-ē-ən 

: dead and decaying flesh