execute

kill, slay, murder, assassinate, dispatch, execute mean to deprive of life. kill merely states the fact of death caused by an agency in any manner.

• • killed in an accident
• • frost killed the plants

slay is a chiefly literary term implying deliberateness and violence but not necessarily motive.

• • slew thousands of the Philistines

murder specifically implies stealth and motive and premeditation and therefore full moral responsibility.

• • convicted of murdering a rival

assassinate applies to deliberate killing openly or secretly often for political motives.

• • terrorists assassinated the Senator

dispatch stresses quickness and directness in putting to death.

• • dispatched the sentry with one bullet

execute stresses putting to death as a legal penalty.

• • executed by lethal gas

perform, execute, discharge, accomplish, achieve, effect, fulfill mean to carry out or into effect. perform implies action that follows established patterns or procedures or fulfills agreed-upon requirements and often connotes special skill.

• • performed gymnastics

execute stresses the carrying out of what exists in plan or in intent.

• • executed the hit-and-run

discharge implies execution and completion of appointed duties or tasks.

• • discharged his duties

accomplish stresses the successful completion of a process rather than the means of carrying it out.

• • accomplished everything they set out to do

achieve adds to accomplish the implication of conquered difficulties.

• • achieve greatness

effect adds to achieve an emphasis on the inherent force in the agent capable of surmounting obstacles.

• • effected sweeping reforms

fulfill implies a complete realization of ends or possibilities.

• • fulfilled their ambitions