Thesaurus results for HARA-KIRI

hara-kiri

noun

variants also hari-kari

Definition of hara-kiri

as in suicide

Related Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of hara-kiri He was struck by the show’s exploration of hara-kiri, the Japanese ritual suicide. — Ruth La Ferla, New York Times, 18 May 2025 The film depicts the historical ‘Honno-ji Incident’ from 1582, when a key vassal of Oda Nobunaga rose in revolt and caused his master to commit hara-kiri in Kyoto. — Mark Schilling, Variety, 17 Apr. 2023

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hara-kiri

Noun

One of the three Vallejo men considered suspects in the kidnapping and murder of Avtar Singh has been arrested, the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office said on Saturday.

— CBS News, CBS News, 8 Nov. 2026
Greenfield resident Donald William Breeden was arrested and booked into Monterey County Jail on two counts of murder with criminal street gang enhancements, according to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office.

— Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 7 Nov. 2026

Definition of murder

Noun

This day, Newsom recalls being joined by Pete Pianezzi, a former bank robber wrongly convicted of a 1937 Los Angeles double homicide.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 10 Nov. 2026
Her death was ruled a homicide from blunt force trauma to the face and chest, according to court records.

— Meredith Colias-Pete, Chicago Tribune, 10 Nov. 2026

Definition of homicide

Noun

The filing says Kirk’s slaying caused a train of events leading the FBI to investigate the SPLC and speak to a group that co-signed Kirk’s letter.

— Hudson Crozier, The Washington Examiner, 5 Nov. 2026
Adel Ramos, who shot and killed Sacramento Police Department Officer Tara O’Sullivan in an ambush-style slaying as O’Sullivan responded to a domestic violence call, was among the latest to be condemned in capital courts.

— Michael McGough, Sacbee.com, 5 Nov. 2026

Definition of slaying

Noun

She is charged with first-degree murder and assisting self-murder, which in Florida is treated like a manslaughter offense.

— Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 30 June 2026
She has been charged with first-degree murder and assisting self-murder, a second-degree felony in Florida punishable by a maximum of 15 years in prison.

— Rafael Olmeda, Sun Sentinel, 29 June 2026

Definition of self-murder

Noun

Preliminary evidence suggests there was no foul play in the man’s death, but his cause of death has not yet been determined.

— Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 5 Nov. 2026
No evidence of foul play was discovered, though the investigation dragged on.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 3 Nov. 2026

Definition of foul play

Browse Nearby Words

haps

hara-kiri

hara-kiris

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Hara-kiri.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hara-kiri. Accessed 12 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of hara-kiri

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on hara-kiri

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

gauntlet

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Popular in Wordplay

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes