as in massacre
the killing of a large number of people
all civilized nations should protest this senseless slaughter
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in to massacre
to kill on a large scale
modern poultry farms slaughter a vast number of chickens every day
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of slaughter
Scott Peters, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Oct. 2025
Language purists like to remind anyone who will listen that decimation actually means the slaughter of one in ten people, and was the military punishment wielded by the Roman army against deserters and mutineers.
—Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2025
Christine Peterson, Outdoor Life, 16 Oct. 2025
Giving up 1,700 terrorist hostages from Israel, basically create a potential pathway to statehood, because of an invasion two years ago that slaughtered Israelis, there's a lot here that still has to play out.
—NBC news, 5 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for slaughter
Noun
If this slaughter of children didn’t move every person to work to prevent any other community from being torn apart by gun violence, then what would?
—Scott Peters, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Oct. 2025
Language purists like to remind anyone who will listen that decimation actually means the slaughter of one in ten people, and was the military punishment wielded by the Roman army against deserters and mutineers.
—Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2025
Verb
Butchering an animal for meat — slaughtering cows, pigs, lambs — was an act of necessity, not pleasure.
—Christine Peterson, Outdoor Life, 16 Oct. 2025
Giving up 1,700 terrorist hostages from Israel, basically create a potential pathway to statehood, because of an invasion two years ago that slaughtered Israelis, there's a lot here that still has to play out.
—NBC news, 5 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for slaughter
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slaughter
Noun
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After surviving the massacre and making a recovery that surprised even her doctors, Sophia returned home in time to celebrate her upcoming 13th birthday, a family spokesperson told CNN.—
Cindy Von Quednow,
CNN Money,
24 Oct. 2025
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During this second season, which ended up being the final one, a lot of people felt the massacre in Ghorman resonated with the real world, specifically Gaza.—
E. Alex Jung,
Vulture,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Johnson’s disappearance nearly five years ago put the spotlight on the many cases involving missing and murdered Indigenous women that families and activists argued were getting overlooked and dismissed.—
Nicquel Terry Ellis,
CNN Money,
3 Nov. 2025
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Rafael Andres, 61, was convicted in 2014 of murdering 31-year-old waitress Yvette Fariñas.—
Grethel Aguila,
Miami Herald,
3 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Slaughter.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slaughter. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.
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