plural butchers
1
a
: someone who cuts and sells meat in a shop
b
: someone who kills animals and prepares their meat to be eaten
2
: a shop that sells meat
The town was small but had a grocery store and a butcher (store/shop).
3
: someone who kills a lot of people or animals in a brutal or cruel way
They are a bunch of butchers [=murderers] who gained power by slaughtering their enemies.
4
informal
: someone who does something very roughly and badly
That surgeon is a butcher! [=a terrible surgeon]
butchers; butchered; butchering
1
: to kill (an animal) and prepare its meat for sale
They've hired someone to butcher the hogs.
2
: to kill (people or animals) in a brutal and cruel way
Many innocent people were butchered under his regime.
3
informal
: to do (something) very badly : to make a mess of (something)
The band has butchered my favorite song.
Cite this Entry
“Butcher.” Merriam-Webster.com Simple Definition, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/simple/butcher. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
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