as in slaughter
the killing of a large number of people
the infamous massacre of more than 200 Sioux at Wounded Knee, South Dakota
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as in to slaughter
to kill on a large scale
the country's rival ethnic groups began massacring one another
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Recent Examples of massacre
Ian Crouch, New Yorker, 29 Jan. 2026
The massacre committed by his late father, Hafez al-Assad, against the city of Hama in February 1982 saw up to 40,000 killed by state security forces over the course of 26 days.
—Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 27 Jan. 2026
David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 23 Jan. 2026
The main argument, though, was fragmentation for the sake of peace among the population - that is, for the benefit of the people being massacred by a powerful central regime, now and in years past.
—Melik Kaylan, Forbes.com, 22 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for massacre
Noun
In a shocking piece of reporting, Cora Engelbrecht speaks to five Iranians who were present at the massacre and—with the help of video evidence and illustrations by Matt Huynh—shares their stories.
—Ian Crouch, New Yorker, 29 Jan. 2026
The massacre committed by his late father, Hafez al-Assad, against the city of Hama in February 1982 saw up to 40,000 killed by state security forces over the course of 26 days.
—Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 27 Jan. 2026
Verb
One of them, the Luisita Golf Course and Country Club, was built over a former sugar plantation where 14 striking workers were massacred in 2004.
—David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 23 Jan. 2026
The main argument, though, was fragmentation for the sake of peace among the population - that is, for the benefit of the people being massacred by a powerful central regime, now and in years past.
—Melik Kaylan, Forbes.com, 22 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for massacre
Recent Examples of Synonyms for massacre
slaughter
Noun
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The sport of wrestling, a national pastime in Iran, has been hit hard by the Iranian regime’s slaughter of protesters seeking to end 47 years of Islamist totalitarian rule in the country.—
Benjamin Weinthal,
FOXNews.com,
7 Feb. 2026
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The animal rights activist saved two cows from slaughter, Liberty and Indigo, in 2020.—
Karen Garcia,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Massacre.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/massacre. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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