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Definition of sacrifice
1 : an act of offering to a deity something precious; especially : the killing of a victim on an altar
2 : something offered in sacrifice
3a : destruction or surrender of something for the sake of something elseb : something given up or lost the sacrifices made by parents
4 : loss goods sold at a sacrifice
5 : sacrifice hit
Indulge Your Inner Word Nerd
Examples of sacrifice in a Sentence
The war required everyone to make sacrifices.
No sacrifice is too great when it comes to her children.
He made many personal sacrifices to provide help to the city's homeless people.
The war required much sacrifice from everyone.
a place where priests performed human sacrifices in ancient rituals
The villagers hoped the gods would accept their sacrifice.
The goat was offered as a sacrifice.
The runner went to second base on a sacrifice.
Recent Examples of sacrifice from the Web
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The novel rarely dwells on the potential consequences of wrestling through injury; rather, Habash glorifies certain aspects of Stephen’s sacrifice.
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The Royals’ Whit Merrifield led off the game with a double, moved to third on a flyout to center and scored on Lorenzo Cain’s shallow sacrifice fly to right field.
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The consumer should recognize that these restaurants are definitely making sacrifices to offer the $5 burger.
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The news of Liu’s diagnosis shocked and saddened fellow human rights activists who have admired the sacrifices Liu and his wife have made in the hope of achieving peaceful political change.
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A fourth-round selection by the Chargers in 2010, Stuckey embraces leadership and sacrifice.
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Katherine’s family is not wealthy, and her parents make sacrifices in order to afford the daily trips, Busani said.
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Silva singled to load the bases and Danny Zardon hit a deep sacrifice fly to center to score Merrigan for a 2-1 Slammers lead.
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The Kougars opened the door in the fourth by allowing a single that fell between two players, a single off a glove and an error on a sacrifice bunt.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sacrifice'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of sacrifice
Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin sacrificium, from sacr-, sacer + facere to make — more at do
Other Religion (Eastern and Other) Terms
Zen, antinomian, avatar, gnosticism, illuminati, ineffable, karma, koan, mantra
sacrifice
Definition of sacrifice
sacrificed
;sacrificing
transitive verb
1 : to offer as a sacrifice
2 : to suffer loss of, give up, renounce, injure, or destroy especially for an ideal, belief, or end
3 : to sell at a loss
4 : to advance (a base runner) by means of a sacrifice hit
5 : to kill (an animal) as part of a scientific experiment
intransitive verb
1 : to make or perform the rites of a sacrifice
2 : to make a sacrifice hit in baseball
sacrificer
nounExamples of sacrifice in a Sentence
She's had to sacrifice a lot for her family.
He sacrificed his personal life in order to get ahead in his career.
I want to follow a diet that is healthful without sacrificing taste.
She was able to ask for their help without sacrificing her dignity.
She was willing to suffer, sacrifice, and work for success.
a place where people were sacrificed in ancient rituals
He sacrificed in his first at bat.
Recent Examples of sacrifice from the Web
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The most obvious consequence would be that the air sacs allowed sauropods to keep their bones light without sacrificing strength.
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Both Jack and Rebecca have sacrificed their own dreams to provide the best lives possible for their three kids.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sacrifice'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
First Known Use of sacrifice
14th century
SACRIFICE Defined for English Language Learners
sacrifice
playDefinition of sacrifice for English Language Learners
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: the act of giving up something that you want to keep especially in order to get or do something else or to help someone
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: an act of killing a person or animal in a religious ceremony as an offering to please a god
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: a person or animal that is killed in a sacrifice
sacrifice
Definition of sacrifice for English Language Learners
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: to give up (something that you want to keep) especially in order to get or do something else or to help someone
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: to kill (a person or animal) in a religious ceremony as an offering to please a god
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baseball : to make a sacrifice bunt
SACRIFICE Defined for Kids
Definition of sacrifice for Students
1 : the act or ceremony of making an offering to God or a god especially on an altar
2 : something offered as a religious act
3 : an act of giving up something especially for the sake of someone or something else We were happy to make a sacrifice of our time to help a friend in need.
4 : something given up especially for the sake of helping others
Word Root of sacrifice
The Latin word sacer, meaning “holy,” and the related word sānctus, also meaning “holy,” give us the roots sacr and sanct. Words from the Latin sacer or sānctus have something to do with holiness. A sanctuary is a holy place. Anything sacred is holy. To sacrifice is to dedicate as a holy offering to a god.
Definition of sacrifice for Students
sacrificed
;sacrificing
1 : to offer or kill as a religious act The ancient ritual involved sacrificing an animal.
2 : to give up (something) especially for the sake of something or someone else They sacrificed their lives for their country.
Learn More about sacrifice
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See words that rhyme with sacrifice Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for sacrifice Spanish Central: Translation of sacrifice Nglish: Translation of sacrifice for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of sacrifice for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about sacrifice
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