hara-kiri

noun

\ ˌher-i-ˈkir-ē

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, ˌha-ri-, -ˈker-ē, -ˈka-rē\

variants: or less commonly hari-kari

Definition of hara-kiri

1 : ritual suicide by disembowelment practiced by the Japanese samurai or formerly decreed by a court in lieu of the death penalty

2 : suicide sense 1b

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The first known use of hara-kiri was in 1840

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