mercy killings

noun

plural of mercy killing
as in murders
the act of ending the life of someone who is very sick or injured in order to prevent any further suffering Some called her death a mercy killing.

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for mercy killings
  1. murders
  2. homicides
  3. massacres
Noun
  • Buffett, an actress, was not accused of carrying out the murders or helping her then-fiancé, Daniel Wozniak, commit them.
    — Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Prosecutors allege that Clancy methodically planned the murders by sending her husband to pick up medication and takeout, and then strangling the children with exercise bands at their Duxbury, Massachusetts, home while he was gone.
    — Melina Khan, USA Today, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of murders
Noun
  • The killings mark the fourth and fifth homicides of the year in New Haven.
    — Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 5 Aug. 2026
  • That was preceded by work in Chicago investigating white-collar misconduct for the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, and an earlier job investigating police misconduct and homicides in that city.
    — Robert Salonga, Mercury News, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of homicides
Noun
  • Although scarce documentation has left a wide range of estimates, as many as 2 million people are said to have been slaughtered in communal massacres during this exodus.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 July 2026
  • Like many other Jewish Americans, the retiree believes Israel is an essential refuge against the possible repetition of large-scale massacres of Jewish people, like the Holocaust, especially as concern about antisemitism rises among Jewish adults.
    — Giovanna Dell’Orto, Los Angeles Times, 13 July 2026
Definition of massacres
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.

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mercy killing
mercy killings
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Cite this Entry

“Mercy killings.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mercy%20killings. Accessed 11 Aug. 2026.

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