Slaughter Definition & Meaning | Britannica Dictionary (original) (raw)

Britannica Dictionary definition of SLAUGHTER

[+ object]

1

:

to kill (an animal) for food

• slaughter cattle

2

:

to kill (many people) in a very violent way

• Hundreds of people were slaughtered [=_massacred_] by the invaders.

3

informal

:

to defeat (someone or something) easily or completely

• Our team got slaughtered yesterday.
• They slaughtered us.

Britannica Dictionary definition of SLAUGHTER

[noncount]

1

:

the act of killing animals for their meat

• Thousands of cows are sent to (the) slaughter every day.

2

:

the violent killing of a large number of people

• the slaughter of innocent people

— see also manslaughter

like a lamb to the slaughter

— see 1lamb