killing field

noun

: a scene of mass killing (as from a battle or massacre)

Examples of killing field in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web But these things will only underscore that 1950s auto racing was a brutal killing field. Stephen Rodrick, Variety, 23 Aug. 2023 The province had been one enormous killing field, and there was nothing neat and tidy about the aftermath of a B-52 strike. George Black, The New Republic, 19 Dec. 2022 Ten years later, even those who have never set foot near Newtown, Connecticut, can conjure the scene painted by police of a first-grade classroom turned into a killing field. Cnn Staff, CNN, 14 Dec. 2022 The fighting in Bucha intensified, and with Russian troops turning the city into a killing field, the family tried to flee by car on March 5. Martin Kuz, The Christian Science Monitor, 23 Aug. 2022 But one major blunder that turned the shoreline into a killing field was shockingly basic. Catherine Musemeche, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 July 2022 So when the horrors of Russia's invasion of Ukraine play out in full view, when a Kyiv suburb is turned into a killing field, when a missile strikes a train terminal packed with people trying to flee the war, there's a powerful impulse for justice. Richard Galant, CNN, 10 Apr. 2022 Once popular with tech workers and young families, Bucha became a killing field as Russia sought to seize the capital. Dominique Soguel, The Christian Science Monitor, 10 June 2022 His neighbor was the first to identify him, recognizing the unshaven face of a man who had watched his beloved street become a killing field. Anchorage Daily News, 16 Apr. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'killing field.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1980, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of killing field was in 1980

Dictionary Entries Near killing field

Cite this Entry

“Killing field.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/killing%20field. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on killing field

Love words? Need even more definitions?

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