Definition of slaughter
1 : the act of killing; specifically : the butchering of livestock for market
2 : killing of great numbers of human beings (as in battle or a massacre) : carnage
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Examples of slaughter in a Sentence
the slaughter of innocent people
all civilized nations should protest this senseless slaughter
Origin and Etymology of slaughter
Middle English, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse slātra to slaughter; akin to Old English sleaht slaughter, slēan to slay — more at slay
First Known Use: 14th century
slaughter
Definition of slaughter
Examples of slaughter in a Sentence
Our team got slaughtered yesterday.
modern poultry farms slaughter a vast number of chickens every day
1535
First Known Use of slaughter
1535
SLAUGHTER Defined for English Language Learners
slaughter
playDefinition of slaughter for English Language Learners
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: the act of killing animals for their meat
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: the violent killing of a large number of people
slaughter
Definition of slaughter for English Language Learners
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: to kill (an animal) for food
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: to kill (many people) in a very violent way
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: to defeat (someone or something) easily or completely
SLAUGHTER Defined for Kids
Definition of slaughter for Students
1 : the act of killing
2 : the act of killing and preparing animals for food
3 : destruction of many lives especially in battle
Learn More about slaughter
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See words that rhyme with slaughter Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for slaughter Spanish Central: Translation of slaughter Nglish: Translation of slaughter for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of slaughter for Arabic speakers
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