femicide

noun

fem·​i·​cide ˈfe-mə-ˌsīd 

plural femicides

: the gender-based murder of a woman or girl by a man

There have been calls for a "national shutdown" to protest femicide in South Africa.

—Africa Check

… speaks to a generation of young people fed up with femicides, sexual assault, and the ever more pervasive violence in Mexico.

—Cody Copeland

Examples of femicide in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While the versions of Elegy concerning the South African femicide and the Herero and Nama genocide appear as one- and two-channel works, a new edition mourning the death of Gazan poet Hiba Abu Nada—who was killed by an Israeli airstrike in October 2023—takes center stage. —Harrison Jacobs, ARTnews.com, 6 May 2026

Domestic violence homicide is one of the leading causes of homicide of women, accounting for 30% to 40% of femicides; the majority were killed with firearms. —Earl Smith, Time, 5 May 2026

So far in 2026, Guanajuato leads the national registry of violent deaths with 413 victims of intentional homicides and five of femicide. —Uriel Blanco, CNN Money, 25 Apr. 2026

Her boyfriend, who was arrested shortly after on suspicion of femicide, was discovered dead in his cell after his arrest, the outlets reported. —Luke Chinman, PEOPLE, 24 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

femi- (in Latin fēmina "woman") + -cide (after homicide) — more at feminine entry 1

First Known Use

1976, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for femicide

• actinide
• aldehyde
• alkoxide
• alongside
• amplified
• arsenide
• beautified
• biocide
• bisulphide
• butoxide
• calcified
• ceramide