electric chair

noun

1
: a chair used in legal electrocution
2
: the penalty of death by electrocution

Examples of electric chair in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The kidnapper admitted it under oath at his trial in 1976, after which he was sentenced to death in the electric chair. — Thomas Lake, AJC.com, 7 Oct. 2026 Both men were strapped into the electric chair in 1927; on the day of their execution, twenty thousand protesters gathered on Boston Common. — Ed Simon, JSTOR Daily, 7 Oct. 2026 Electricity tore through a blue-violet sky and an enormous electric chair materialized above Hetfield. — Melinda Sheckells, HollywoodReporter, 2 Oct. 2026 In that time period, Tennessee put seven inmates to death — two by injection and five in the electric chair. — ABC News, 2 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for electric chair

Word History

First Known Use

1883, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of electric chair was in 1883

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Electric chair.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/electric%20chair. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

Legal Definition

electric chair

noun
elec·​tric chair
1
: a chair used in performing a legal electrocution
2
: the penalty of death by electrocution

More from Merriam-Webster on electric chair

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster