noun / verb
massacre
MAS-uh-ker/ˈmæsəkər/
The brutal killing of many defenseless people or animals.
The dead deer and spent cartridges reveal the aftermath of a massacre.
Etymology
Old French macacre named both a slaughterhouse and slaughter itself. That butchery sense underlies the English word for indiscriminate killing of people or animals; the older word’s origin is unknown.
In context
there's a massacre where snipers kill people in the Maidan.
More examples
- The soldiers were accused of massacring civilians.
- The massacre left the village deserted.
- Survivors described how the massacre began.
Forms
massacre · massacres · massacred · massacring
Similar words
- slaughter
- Can refer to routine animal killing as well as brutal mass killing.
- mass killing
- The direct descriptive phrase, with less emphasis on helplessness.