slaughters 1 of 2

noun

plural of slaughter
as in massacres
the killing of a large number of people all civilized nations should protest this senseless slaughter

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

slaughters

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of slaughter
as in murders
to kill on a large scale modern poultry farms slaughter a vast number of chickens every day

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 slaughters
Noun
Hands-down one of the most disgusting movies ever made (a compliment), the film finds the indefatigable slasher, who was decapitated at the end of Terrifier 2, reattaching his head and commencing his ritual slaughters. — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
Verb
Notably, this happens after Odysseus slaughters Penelope’s suitors and tells Telemachus to kill the female slaves who have slept with them. — Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 17 July 2026 When a wandering wolf threatens his fragile peace and slaughters his flock, Gaspard, blinded by rage, embarks on a perilous quest for vengeance — one that will lead him to the farthest reaches of his sorrow and guilt. — Kevin Giraud, Variety, 22 June 2026 And then there is a gory massacre scene from the original Camp Miasma, in which Little Death (played by TV Glow‘s Jack Haven) slaughters dozens of unlucky campers to a highly unusual, anachronistic hit song from the 1990s. — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 20 May 2026 Meanwhile, Du-yeong slaughters an entire building of bloodhounds in the search for So-yeon. — Kayti Burt, Time, 3 Apr. 2026 The only question is, how many more must be killed, before the world wakes up to the genocide that slaughters thousands of Christians every year. — Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 17 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slaughters
  1. massacres
  2. murders
  3. slays
  4. executes
  5. destroys
Noun
  • 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
  • Based on thousands of testimonies and years of research conducted by Gerardi and the Archbishop’s Office of Human Rights, the report documented more than 400 massacres.
    — Britannica Editors, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 July 2026
Definition of massacres
Verb
  • Moriarty has reported on the yogurt shop murders for over 30 years.
    — Erin Moriarty, CBS News, 26 June 2026
  • Not the family stuff, like Natalie’s spontaneous nipple piercing after making out with Cady’s maybe-daughter, Nevaeh (Malia Pyles), who later murders her own mother after kissing her, for way too long, on the mouth.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 26 June 2026
Definition of murders
Verb
  • In East Rutherford, New Jersey, Beyoncé slays in all-white at the World Cup final between Argentina and Spain, while Justin and Hailey Bieber show off their streetwear style in New York City.
    — Brendan Le, PEOPLE, 20 July 2026
  • Kerry Washington completely dismissing Seth Meyers’s home life absolutely slays.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 19 June 2026
Definition of slays
Verb
  • How a company executes may change over time, but its principles should not.
    — Nadia AlShomali, Forbes.com, 17 July 2026
  • Soon after Rhaenyra executes Otto Hightower, who was once mastermind of that family’s schemes, Ormund steps up to be the faction’s new heavy.
    — Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 13 July 2026
Definition of executes
Verb
  • Zeus obliges, striking their ship with a thunderbolt that destroys it and kills every member of Odysseus’ crew except the king himself.
    — Brianna Zigler, Entertainment Weekly, 20 July 2026
  • Zeus destroys Odysseus’ last ship, killing his crew and leaving Odysseus as the only survivor.
    — Skyler Trepel, PEOPLE, 17 July 2026
Definition of destroys

Browse Nearby Words

slaughtering
slaughters
slave
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Slaughters.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slaughters. Accessed 24 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on slaughters

Nglish: Translation of slaughters for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of itinerant

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

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

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
chain-question-mark
Missing Link Quiz July 2026 Five seconds to figure out the word that fits bot...
See All