mas·sa·cre
ˈma-si-kər 
1
: the act or an instance of killing a number of usually helpless or unresisting human beings under circumstances of atrocity or cruelty
witnessed the massacre of a boatload of refugees
2
: a cruel or wanton (see wanton entry 1 sense 1a) murder
3
: a wholesale slaughter of animals
Residents engaged in a citywide cat massacre.
4
: an act of complete destruction
the author's massacre of traditional federalist presuppositions—
R. G. McCloskey
R. G. McCloskeythe Puritan massacre of statues and pictures—Robert Hughes
Robert Hughes
massacred; massacring
ˈma-si-k(ə-)riŋ
1
: to kill by massacre
2
: mangle sense 2
words were misspelled and syntax massacred—Bice Clemow
Bice ClemowExamples of massacre in a Sentence
Noun
The game turned out to be a complete massacre.
the infamous massacre of more than 200 Sioux at Wounded Knee, South Dakota
Verb
Hundreds have been massacred in the uprising.
The other team really massacred us on Saturday.
He really massacred that song.
Recent Examples on the Web
Michael Luo, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2025
Additionally, a camera operator on the doc appears to have shown support on social media for the Oct. 7 massacre in 2023, when Hamas killed around 1,200 people.
—Lily Ford, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Mar. 2025
Taijuan Moorman, USA TODAY, 20 Feb. 2025
Combat can often be janky, with some weapons feeling floaty and imprecise, enemies sometimes bugging out, frozen in place for the party to massacre.
—Hayes Madsen, Rolling Stone, 13 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for massacre
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.
Noun
A week after the massacre, two hundred soldiers and six hundred and fifty Chinese miners arrived in Rock Springs.
—Michael Luo, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2025
Additionally, a camera operator on the doc appears to have shown support on social media for the Oct. 7 massacre in 2023, when Hamas killed around 1,200 people.
—Lily Ford, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Mar. 2025
Verb
The first season ended with Joel making the shocking decision to massacre a group of Fireflies, who planned to use Elle's immunity to make a cure for the infection but at the cost of her life.
—Taijuan Moorman, USA TODAY, 20 Feb. 2025
Combat can often be janky, with some weapons feeling floaty and imprecise, enemies sometimes bugging out, frozen in place for the party to massacre.
—Hayes Madsen, Rolling Stone, 13 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for massacre
Articles Related to massacre
Cite this Entry
“Massacre.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/massacre. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
massacre
1 of 2 verb
mas·sa·cre
ˈmas-i-kər
massacred; massacring
-k(ə-)riŋ
: to kill in a massacre : slaughter
massacrer
noun
-i-kər-ər
-i-krər
massacre
2 of 2 noun
: the violent and cruel killing of a number of persons
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share