1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

slayings

noun

plural of slaying
as in murders
the intentional and unlawful taking of another person's life a man wanted for the slaying of seven people during an armed robbery

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for slayings
  1. murders
  2. homicides
  3. killings
Noun
  • But, according to the warrant, location data from the Equinox show the vehicle leaving Gonzalez’s house in Florida City and traveling to the scene of the murders.
    — Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Investigators stressed that the poison was not the potassium cyanide used in the Tylenol murders.
    — Brittany Miller, FOXNews.com, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of murders
Noun
  • South Africa has extremely high rates of violent crime, with official police statistics recording 5,427 homicides in the latest three-month period between April and June at an average of nearly 60 homicides a day.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 23 Sep. 2026
  • The shooting is the latest in a series of mass killings in South Africa, where police recorded 5,427 homicides during a recent three-month period.
    — Gerald Imray, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of homicides
Noun
  • The Johnson County District Court sentenced Robinson to death for the killings of two women and to life in prison in Kansas for the killing of a third.
    — Alexa Newsom, Kansas City Star, 18 June 2026
  • Myung Jin Kim, 31, was wanted in connection with two killings, including a botched murder-for-hire plot in San Jose in 2016 and the killing of Kim’s friend in the parking lot of a CVS in Westminster two years later.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 12 June 2026
Definition of killings
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.

Browse Nearby Words

slaying
slayings
slays
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Slayings.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slayings. Accessed 27 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
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 bellwether

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

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

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 25
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
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
image of the words cracker fly and sale arranged in a triangle with the word fire in the middle
Triple Play Quiz Find the word that pairs with each of the three g...
See All