massacre

See also massacré

English

Alternative forms

massacer (archaic)

Etymology

1580, from Middle French massacre, from Old French macacre, macecle (“slaughterhouse, butchery”), from Medieval Latin mazacrium (“massacre, slaughter, killing”, also “the head of a newly killed stag”), from Middle Low German *matskelen (“to massacre”) (compare German metzeln (“massacre”)), frequentive of matsken, matzgen (“to cut, hew”), from Proto-Germanic *maitanan (“to cut”), from Proto-Indo-European *mei- (“small”). Akin to Old High German meizan (“to cut”), Dutch matsen (“to maul, kill”), dialectal German metzgern "to butcher, kill", German metzgen (“to cull, kill, slaughter cattle”), Metzger (“a butcher”), Metzelei (“massacre”), Gothic 𐌼𐌰𐌹𐍄𐌰𐌽 (maitan, “to cut”). See also the French term massacrer.

Pronunciation

(UK) IPA: /ˈmæs.ə.kə(ɹ)/, X-SAMPA: /"m{s.@.k@(r)/
Audio (US)
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Noun

massacre (plural massacres)

The intentional killing of a considerable number of human beings, under circumstances of atrocity or cruelty, or contrary to the norms of civilized people.
the massacre on St. Bartholomew's Day

St. Valentine's Day massacre

Amritsar massacre

Columbine High School massacre

the Kent State massacre

the Wounded Knee massacre
(obsolete) Murder.
- 1593, William Shakespeare, The Tragedy of Richard the Third
  The tyrannous and bloody act is done,—
  
  The most arch deed of piteous massacre
  
  That ever yet this land was guilty of.

Synonyms

butchery, carnage, slaughter.
Massacre denotes the promiscuous slaughter of many who can not make resistance, or much resistance.
- 1592, William Shakespeare, Titus Andronicus, I,v
  I'll find a day to massacre them all, And raze their faction and their family
Butchery refers to cold-blooded cruelty in the killing of men as if they were brute beasts.
- 1593, William Shakespeare, Richard III, I,ii
  If thou delight to view thy heinous deeds, Behold this pattern of thy butcheries
Carnage points to slaughter as producing the heaped-up bodies of the slain.
- 1674, John Milton, Paradise Lost
  Such a scent I draw Of carnage, prey innumerable!

Related terms

mass murder

Translations

intentional mass killing

Arabic: مذبحة (ar) (madhbaHa) f
Catalan: massacre (ca) m
Chinese: trad. 大屠殺, simpl. 大屠杀 (pinyin: dàtúshā), trad. 屠殺, simpl. 屠杀 (pinyin: túshā), trad. 慘案, simpl. 惨案 (pinyin: cǎn'àn), trad. 慘殺, simpl. 惨杀 (pinyin: cǎnshā), trad. 殺戮, simpl. 杀戮 (pinyin: shālù)
Czech: masakr (cs) m
Danish: massakre (da) c
Esperanto: amasbuĉado (eo), masakro (eo)
Finnish: joukkomurha (fi), verilöyly (fi), teurastus (fi)
French: massacre (fr) m
German: Massaker (de) n
Greek: σφαγή (el) (sfagí)
Hebrew: טבח (he) (tevach) m
Hungarian: mészárlás (hu)
Japanese: 大虐殺 (ja) (daigyakusatsu), 虐殺 (ja) (gyakusatsu), 惨殺 (ja) (zansatsu), みなごろし (ja) (minagoroshi)
Jèrriais: machacréthie f, machacre m
Korean: 학살 (ko)

Latin: trucidatio (la)
Latvian: slaktiņš (lv) m, masveida slepkavība (lv) f
Lithuanian: žudynės (lt) f pl, skerdynės (lt) f pl
Norwegian: massakre (no)
Polish: masakra (pl) f
Portuguese: massacre (pt) m
Russian: резня (ru) (reznjá) f , массовое убийство (ru) (mássovoje ubíjstvo) n , бойня (ru) (bójnja) f
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: масакр (sh) m, покољ (sh) m, крвопролиће (sh) m, сеча (sh) f

Roman: masakr (sh) m, pokolj (sh) m, krvoproliće (sh) m, seča (sh) f
Serbo-Croatian: masakr (sh), pokolj (sh), krvoproliće (sh)
Slovak: masakra (sk) f
Slovene: pokol (sl) m, masaker (sl) m
Spanish: masacre (es) f
Swedish: massaker (sv) c
Telugu: ఊచకోత (te) (oochakOta)
Welsh: llofruddiaeth (cy)

Verb

massacre (third-person singular simple present massacres, present participle massacring, simple past and past participle massacred)

(transitive) To kill in considerable numbers where much resistance can not be made; to kill with indiscriminate violence, without necessity, and contrary to the norms of civilized people; to butcher; to slaughter. (Often limited to the killing of human beings.)
- 1849, Thomas Babington Macaulay, The History Of England From the Accession of James II
  If James should be pleased to massacre them all, as Maximilian had massacred the Theban legion

Translations

to kill in considerable numbers

Catalan: massacrar (ca)
Czech: masakrovat (cs)
Danish: massakrere (da)
Finnish: joukkomurhata (fi), teurastaa (fi)
French: massacrer (fr)
German: massakrieren (de)
Jèrriais: machacrer

Norwegian: massakrere (no)
Portuguese: massacrar (pt)
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: масакрирати (sh), поклати (sh), поубијати (sh)

Roman: masakrirati (sh), poklati (sh), poubijati (sh)
Slovene: poklati (sl)
Spanish: masacrar (es)