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
Evan Mealins, USA Today, 25 May 2025
After the October 7 massacre, the Houthis in Yemen began attacking American naval vessels and conducting missile strikes on Israel in solidarity with Hamas.
—Daniel Byman, The Atlantic, 24 May 2025
Faisal Kutty, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 May 2025
In March, Sunni Islamist gangs massacred Alawites on the Syrian coast, in attacks that left well over 1,000 people dead.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 14 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for massacre
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Noun
Breivik refers to Anders Behring Breivik, who killed 77 people in a massacre in Norway in 2011 that targeted mostly teenagers at a camp.
—Evan Mealins, USA Today, 25 May 2025
After the October 7 massacre, the Houthis in Yemen began attacking American naval vessels and conducting missile strikes on Israel in solidarity with Hamas.
—Daniel Byman, The Atlantic, 24 May 2025
Verb
When civil war broke out in Libya in the wake of the 2011 Arab Spring, the U.S. and European countries launched an air war against Libya to prevent Gaddafi from massacring opponents of his government.
—Faisal Kutty, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 May 2025
In March, Sunni Islamist gangs massacred Alawites on the Syrian coast, in attacks that left well over 1,000 people dead.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 14 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for massacre
Cite this Entry
“Massacre.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/massacre. Accessed 31 May. 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
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