1
as in slaughtered
to kill on a large scale
the barbarians butchered the monks in the monasteries without mercy
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in fumbled
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way
the new piano student butchered the sonatina
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of butchered
Because, like other market animals, even the plush, adorable bovine winners end up butchered and sent to supermarkets.
—
Miguel Otárola, Denver Post, 21 Jan. 2026
Now sixty-five, Petro is a survivor of a brutal era in which the Colombian state assassinated leftist leaders and butchered their followers, in an effort to quell the country’s Marxist guerrilla forces.
—Jon Lee Anderson, New Yorker, 15 Jan. 2026
Because the puppies were found near a site where ancient humans had butchered woolly mammoths, researchers had wondered whether they might be domesticated dogs, as opposed to wolves.
—Evan Bush, NBC news, 14 Jan. 2026
Bavette is known for its high-quality meats sourced from small producers and butchered in-house.
—Rachel Bernhard, jsonline.com, 12 Jan. 2026
Late in the second period, the Blue Jackets, still leading 4-1, continually butchered the puck in their own zone, almost presenting it to the Penguins as an offering.
—Aaron Portzline, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026
At the time that the cut was identified, researchers proposed that the mark proved that First Peoples butchered ancient megafauna.
—Mindy Weisberger, CNN Money, 27 Oct. 2025
Multiple other locations in central Italy have butchered elephant remains, small stone tools, and larger modified bones.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 8 Oct. 2025
Reese tried that one, too, but butchered it when his lean came well into the end zone.
—Don Norcross, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Sep. 2025
Miguel Otárola, Denver Post, 21 Jan. 2026
Now sixty-five, Petro is a survivor of a brutal era in which the Colombian state assassinated leftist leaders and butchered their followers, in an effort to quell the country’s Marxist guerrilla forces.
—Jon Lee Anderson, New Yorker, 15 Jan. 2026
Because the puppies were found near a site where ancient humans had butchered woolly mammoths, researchers had wondered whether they might be domesticated dogs, as opposed to wolves.
—Evan Bush, NBC news, 14 Jan. 2026
Bavette is known for its high-quality meats sourced from small producers and butchered in-house.
—Rachel Bernhard, jsonline.com, 12 Jan. 2026
Late in the second period, the Blue Jackets, still leading 4-1, continually butchered the puck in their own zone, almost presenting it to the Penguins as an offering.
—Aaron Portzline, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026
At the time that the cut was identified, researchers proposed that the mark proved that First Peoples butchered ancient megafauna.
—Mindy Weisberger, CNN Money, 27 Oct. 2025
Multiple other locations in central Italy have butchered elephant remains, small stone tools, and larger modified bones.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 8 Oct. 2025
Reese tried that one, too, but butchered it when his lean came well into the end zone.
—Don Norcross, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for butchered
Verb
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In September, at least 89 Christians were reportedly slaughtered by jihadists at a funeral and in surrounding fields.—
Paul Tilsley,
FOXNews.com,
28 Dec. 2025
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That premonition rings true when his parents (Tara Buckman, Geoff Hansen) are slaughtered by a carjacker dressed as Old Saint Nick himself (Charles Dierkop) just hours later, condemning the toddler into further moral compass trauma at an orphanage run by a domineering Mother Superior nun from Hell.—
Huntley Woods,
Entertainment Weekly,
19 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Denver recovered the ensuing onside kick, but, alas, on the next play, Steve Sewell fumbled the ball back to Buffalo.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
21 Jan. 2026
-
Maye finished 16 of 27 for 179 yards but had an interception and fumbled four times, losing two in cold conditions with snow and rain falling throughout the game.—
Kyle Hightower,
Chicago Tribune,
19 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
As the curtain came down, Hilty waved and blew kisses to the crowd.—
Dave Quinn,
PEOPLE,
12 Jan. 2026
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LaFleur has one year remaining on his contract, and his job status came into question after the Packers blew an 18-point fourth-quarter lead in Saturday night’s 31-27 playoff loss to the Chicago Bears.—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
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In 2017, for instance, prosecutors in Contra Costa overcame an insanity defense by William Shultz, who murdered a 9-year-old Discovery Bay boy during a sleepover and blamed it on a delusion about an impending World War III.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
8 Jan. 2026
-
Three women are murdered in Dahlonega, Georgia, and the six episodes are all about the search for the culprit.—
Olivia B. Waxman,
Time,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Debris and the mangled remains of three cars littered a street in the city of Placentia after a police pursuit ended in a violent and deadly crash.—
Matthew Rodriguez,
CBS News,
22 Jan. 2026
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Francisco Carmona, Córdoba’s fire chief, told Spanish national radio RNE that one of the trains was badly mangled, with at least four wagons off the rails.—
Joseph Wilson,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Tragically, one hatchling died during heavy snowfall, but two — dubbed Sunny and Gizmo — survived the harsh season, spread their wings and flew away.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
24 Jan. 2026
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More than 3,000 federal immigration personnel have been deployed to Minneapolis since December in what the administration has dubbed Operation Metro Surge.—
Marlene Lenthang,
NBC news,
24 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Nothing is worse than a garment getting thrown into the washer and ruined by mistake.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
The Spruce,
19 Jan. 2026
-
McCarthyism, as the movement became known, ruined the reputations and destroyed the careers of hundreds of innocent people.—
Chris John Amorosino,
Hartford Courant,
16 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The severe inflation in the late 1940s that destroyed China’s anti-Communist middle class in urban areas helped enable Mao’s Communists to triumph in that country’s civil war.—
Steve Forbes,
Forbes.com,
21 Jan. 2026
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Their body oils are going to be destroyed!—
Brie Stimson,
FOXNews.com,
21 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Butchered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/butchered. Accessed 26 Jan. 2026.
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