massacre

1 of 2

noun

mas·​sa·​cre ˈma-si-kər 

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 wanton entry 1 sense 1a) 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

massacre

2 of 2

verb

massacred; massacring ˈma-si-k(ə-)riŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to kill by massacre

2

: mangle sense 2

… words were misspelled and syntax massacred.

—Bice Clemow

massacrer

ˈma-si-kər-ər 

-krər

noun

Synonyms of massacre

Noun

• slaughter

Verb

• slaughter

Examples of massacre in a Sentence

Noun

The game turned out to be a complete massacre.

the infamous massacre of more than 200 Sioux at Wounded Knee, South Dakota

Verb

Hundreds have been massacred in the uprising.

The other team really massacred us on Saturday.

He really massacred that song.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

These earlier massacres also made the SDF hesitant about completely disbanding immediately, as Sharaa continues to demand. —Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 20 Jan. 2026

Weiss covered the massacre for the Times, writing a moving report about the aftermath. —Clare Malone, New Yorker, 19 Jan. 2026

Verb

No political power has the right to massacre its own people in order to preserve itself or to silence the truth. —Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 21 Jan. 2026

In probably the most severe conflagration since the rise of the Islamic State amidst Syria’s brutal civil war, innocent and unarmed Iranians are being massacred by a ruthless regime under the darkness of a complete communications and internet blackout. —Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 20 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle French

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1578, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1581, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

massacre

1 of 2 verb

mas·​sa·​cre ˈmas-i-kər 

massacred; massacring

-k(ə-)riŋ

: to kill in a massacre : slaughter

massacrer

-i-kər-ər, 

-i-krər

noun

massacre

2 of 2 noun

: the violent and cruel killing of a number of persons