fratricide

English

Etymology 1

From Middle French fratricide or its etymon Latin frātricīdium.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

fratricide (countable and uncountable, plural fratricides)

1. The killing of one's brother (or sister).
   • 1856, Mrs. William Busk, Mediæval Popes, Emperors, Kings, and Crusaders: Or, Germany, Italy and Palestine, from A.D. 1125 to A.D. 1268‎^[1], volume IV, London: Hookham and Sons, →OCLC, page 294:

     The new accusation brought by Urban against Manfred of murdering his sister-in-law's embassador – it may be observed that, tacitly, he acquits him of parricide, fratricide, and nepoticide – requires a little explanation.

   • 2014, Albert Lee Strickland, “Familicide”, in Michael John Brennan, editor, The A–Z of Death and Dying: Social, Medical, and Cultural Aspects, Santa Barbara, Calif.: Greenwood Publishing Group, →ISBN, pages 205–206:

     Terms related to familicide include filicide (the killing of one's child or children), uxoricide (the killing of one's wife), fratricide or sororicide (the killing of one's brother or sister), avunculicide (the killing of one's uncle), and nepoticide (the killing of one's nephew).

2. (military, by extension) The intentional or unintentional killing of a comrade in arms.
   • 1999, Richard M. Swain, Lucky War: Third Army in Desert Storm, DIANE Publishing, page 180:

     From January on, Third Army also spent a good deal of energy trying to solve the problem of fratricide, the killing or injuring of one's own forces by what is ironically called 'friendly fire,' […]

   • 2007 September 25, Bungie, Halo 3, Microsoft Game Studios, Xbox 360, level/area: Terminal Six (Legendary):

     Such a press of arms invites many opportunities for unintentional fratricide.

3. (military, by extension) The undesirable situation where the separate missiles from a MIRV interfere with each other as they explode.

Derived terms

• fratricidal
• nuclear fratricide

Related terms

• (murder): homicide
• (murder of father): patricide
• (murder of king): regicide
• (murder of sister): sororicide

Translations

killing of one's sibling

• Armenian: եղբայրասպանություն (hy) (eġbayraspanutʻyun)
• Belarusian: братазабо́йства n (bratazabójstva), братагу́бства n (bratahúbstva)
• Bulgarian: братоуби́йство n (bratoubíjstvo)
• Catalan: fratricidi m
• Czech: bratrovražda (cs) f
• Danish: brodermord n
• Dutch: broedermoord (nl) m
• Estonian: vennatapp
• Finnish: veljesmurha, veljensurma (of a brother)
• French: fratricide (fr) m
• Galician: fratricidio m
• German: Brudermord (de) m (of a brother), Geschwistermord m (of a sibling), Geschwistertötung f (of a sibling), Fratrizid m
• Greek: αδελφοκτονία (el) f (adelfoktonía)
• Ido: fratulocido
• Italian: fratricidio (it) m
• Macedonian: братоубиство n (bratoubistvo)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: brodermord n

  Nynorsk: brodermord n, brormord n

• Old English: brōþorcwealm m
• Persian: برادرکشی (fa) (berâdarkoši)
• Polish: bratobójstwo (pl) n
• Portuguese: fratricídio (pt) m
• Romanian: fratricid (ro) n
• Russian: братоуби́йство (ru) n (bratoubíjstvo)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: братоу̀биство n, братоу̀бо̄јство n, фратрѝцӣд m

  Roman: bratoùbistvo n, bratoùbōjstvo (sh) n, fratrìcīd (sh) m

• Slovak: bratovražda f
• Slovene: bratomor m
• Spanish: fratricidio (es) m
• Swedish: brodermord (sv) n, brödramord n
• Tagalog: pratrisidyo
• Turkish: kardeş cinayeti
• Ukrainian: братовби́вство (uk) n (bratovbývstvo), братогу́бство n (bratohúbstvo)

Etymology 2

From Middle English fratricide, from Middle French fratricide or its etymon Latin frātricīda.

Noun

fratricide (plural fratricides)

1. A person who commits fratricide.
   • 1853, John Ruskin, “Roman Renaissance”, in The Stones of Venice, volume III (The Fall), London: Smith, Elder, and Co., […], →OCLC, § LVI, page 73:

     Can Signorio was twice a fratricide, the last time when he lay upon his death-bed: his tomb bears upon its gables the images of six virtues, — Faith, Hope, Charity, Prudence, and (I believe) Justice and Fortitude.

   • 1936, H. A. L. Fisher, A History of Europe, Edward Arnold Publishers, page 376:

     The conversion of Russia to Christianity was effected, it would seem by a monster of cruelty and lust. That Vladimir (980–1015) was a fratricide, who maintained 3,500 concubines, has not prevented his canonization as a saint.

Synonyms

• brother-slayer

Translations

person who commits fratricide

• Armenian: եղբայրասպան (hy) (eġbayraspan)
• Belarusian: братазабо́йца m (bratazabójca), братагу́бец m (bratahúbjec)
• Bulgarian: братоуби́ец m (bratoubíec), братоуби́йца f (bratoubíjca)
• Catalan: fratricida m or f
• Czech: bratrovrah (cs) m
• Danish: brodermorder c, brodermorderske c (female)
• Estonian: vennatapja
• Finnish: veljenmurhaaja, veljensurmaaja
• French: fratricide (fr) m
• Galician: fratricida m or f
• German: Brudermörder (de) m, Brudermörderin (de) f, Geschwistermörder m (of a sibling), Geschwistermörderin f (of a sibling)
• Greek: αδελφοκτόνος (el) m or f (adelfoktónos)
• Italian: fratricida (it) m or f
• Macedonian: братоубиец m (bratoubiec)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: brodermorder m

  Nynorsk: brodermordar m, brormordar m

• Polish: bratobójca (pl) m, bratobójczyni f
• Portuguese: fratricida (pt) m or f
• Romanian: fratricid (ro) m, fratricidă (ro) f
• Russian: братоуби́йца (ru) m or f (bratoubíjca)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: братоубица m, братоу̀бојица m

  Roman: bratoubica m, bratoùbojica (sh) m

• Slovak: bratovrah m
• Slovene: bratomorilec m
• Spanish: fratricida (es) m or f
• Swedish: brodermördare c, brodermörderska c (female)
• Tagalog: pratrisida
• Ukrainian: братовби́вця (uk) m or f (bratovbývcja), братовби́вець (uk) m (bratovbývecʹ), братогу́бець m (bratohúbecʹ)

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fʁa.tʁi.sid/

• Audio (Canada):

  (file)

Etymology 1

Learned borrowing from Late Latin frātricīdium.

Noun

fratricide m (plural fratricides)

1. fratricide (crime of killing one's brother)

Etymology 2

Learned borrowing from Latin frātricīda.

Noun

fratricide m (plural fratricides)

1. fratricide (person who commits this crime)

Adjective

fratricide (plural fratricides)

1. fratricidal

Related terms

• sororicide
• parricide

Further reading

• “fratricide”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Italian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fra.triˈt͡ʃi.de/
• Rhymes: -ide
• Hyphenation: fra‧tri‧cì‧de

Adjective

fratricide

1. feminine plural of fratricida

Noun

fratricide f pl

1. plural of fratricida