as in murders
the act of ending the life of someone who is very sick or injured in order to prevent any further suffering
Some called her death a mercy killing.
Related Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mercy killings
Noun
-
In the laconic tones of a police report, Ibargüengoitia investigates the murders and their motives, the society and the profession - the oldest of all, but no less mysterious for that - which precipitated them.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025 -
The 42-year-old has a rap sheet spanning three decades, including two armed robberies in Manhattan just weeks before the murders, FOX 5 reported.—
Bonny Chu,
FOXNews.com,
13 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
But even though detainee Erik Martinez pleaded guilty to the murder, Bianco's department did not list his victim among the homicides.—
Christopher Damien,
USA Today,
19 Sep. 2025
-
Last year at this time, police had investigated 68 homicides.—
Bay Area News Group,
Mercury News,
19 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Syria’s current government has in some cases released Assadist figures accused of massacres and appointed former militia leaders accused of crimes against civilians to high ranks in the new army.—
Robin Yassin-Kassab,
Time,
17 Sep. 2025
-
The platform was then embroiled in the Cambridge Analytica scandal and accused of allowing misinformation that skewed elections in the US and other western countries, and led to massacres in places like Myanmar.—
Reed Albergotti,
semafor.com,
3 Sep. 2025
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.
Cite this Entry
“Mercy killings.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mercy%20killings. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share