involuntary manslaughter

noun

: manslaughter resulting from the failure to perform a legal duty expressly required to safeguard human life, from the commission of an unlawful act not constituting a felony, or from the commission of a lawful act in a negligent or improper manner

Examples of involuntary manslaughter in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Baldwin was twice indicted for involuntary manslaughter — both in January 2023 and January 2024 — culminating in a trial last summer that was ultimately dismissed with prejudice. — Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 26 Mar. 2025 In April 2023, Baldwin’s charges of involuntary manslaughter were dropped. — Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 26 Mar. 2025 The judge dismissed the case against Baldwin in July 2024, but the movie's armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to 18 months in prison. — Paul Du Quenoy, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Mar. 2025 Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in a case surrounding the incident and sentenced to 18 months in prison. — Shania Russell, EW.com, 26 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for involuntary manslaughter

Word History

First Known Use

1792, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of involuntary manslaughter was in 1792

Rhymes for involuntary manslaughter

See All Rhymes for involuntary manslaughter

Browse Nearby Words

involuntary deposit
involuntary manslaughter
involuntary muscle
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Involuntary manslaughter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/involuntary%20manslaughter. Accessed 31 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

Legal Definition

involuntary manslaughter

see manslaughter

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Words You Always Have to Look Up

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
burrowing owl athene cunicularia tilts its head outside its burrow on marco island florida
Guess the Curious Origins of These Everyday Words Oh, that’s where that comes from…
See All