Definition of massacre
1 : the act or an instance of killing a number of usually helpless or unresisting human beings under circumstances of atrocity or cruelty witnessed the massacre of a boatload of refugees
2 : a cruel or wanton (see 1wanton 3a) murder
3 : a wholesale slaughter of animals Residents engaged in a citywide cat massacre.
4 : an act of complete destruction the author's massacre of traditional federalist presuppositions — R. G. McCloskey the Puritan massacre of statues and pictures — Robert Hughes
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Examples of massacre in a Sentence
The game turned out to be a complete massacre.
the infamous massacre of more than 200 Sioux at Wounded Knee, South Dakota
Origin and Etymology of massacre
Middle French
Examples of massacre in a Sentence
Hundreds have been massacred in the uprising.
The other team really massacred us on Saturday.
He really massacred that song.
Origin and Etymology of massacre
see 1massacre
MASSACRE Defined for English Language Learners
massacre
playDefinition of massacre for English Language Learners
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: the violent killing of many people
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: a game or competition in which one person or team easily defeats another
massacre
Definition of massacre for English Language Learners
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: to violently kill (a group of people)
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: to easily defeat (someone or something)
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: to do (something) very badly : to ruin (something) because of lack of skill
MASSACRE Defined for Kids
Definition of massacre for Students
: the violent and cruel killing of a large number of people
Definition of massacre for Students
massacred
;massacring
: to kill a large number of people in a violent and cruel manner
Learn More about massacre
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Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for massacre Spanish Central: Translation of massacre Nglish: Translation of massacre for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of massacre for Arabic speakers
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