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| kill [ kil ] |
verb (past and past participle killed, present participle kill·ing, 3rd person present singular kills) |
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| Definition: |
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1. transitive and intransitive verb cause something living to die: to cause the death of a person, animal, or other organism
  They were killed in a car accident.
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2. transitive verb ruin something: to cause something to end or be ruined
The remark killed the conversation.
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3. transitive verb overpower something subtle or less strong: to destroy or severely damage an essential, often delicate quality in something by superimposing something stronger
Her perfume killed the scent of the roses.
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4. transitive verb block plan: to prevent a proposal such as the passing of a congressional bill from going through
The bill was killed in the Appropriations Committee.
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5. transitive verb hurt part of somebody's body: to cause severe physical pain or discomfort to somebody
(
informal
)
My feet are killing me!
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6. transitive verb tire somebody out: to exhaust somebody completely
(
informal
)
These stairs kill me every time.
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7. kill your·self vr overexert yourself: to push yourself too hard
(
informal
)
(
often used ironically
)
She was killing herself to get the job done on time.
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8. transitive verb turn something off: to disconnect the power to something electrical or mechanical so that it stops working
(
informal
)
Kill the engine.
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9. transitive verb make time pass: to use up spare time in some activity
(
informal
)
We had a couple of hours to kill before going to the airport.
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10. transitive and intransitive verb bowl somebody over: to have an overpowering effect on somebody, e.g. causing extreme admiration, helpless laughter, or utter amazement
(
informal
)
dressed to kill
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11. transitive verb drink all of something: to finish off a bottle of something, usually an alcoholic beverage
(
slang
)
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12. transitive verb soccer control ball: in soccer, to bring a fast-moving ball under instant control
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13. transitive verb racket games make ball unreturnable: in racket games, to hit the ball so hard, with such skill, or in such a direction that your opponent has no chance of returning it
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14. transitive verb U.S. football make ball dead: in football, to stop the ball so that it is no longer in play
(
informal
)
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15. transitive verb U.S. hit ball hard: to hit a ball very hard
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16. transitive verb publishing cut text: to delete a piece of text from a publication or remove a particular amount from a text
(
slang
)
We had to kill half a column to make space for the ad.
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noun (plural kills) |
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| Definition: |
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1. killing: the moment or an act of killing an animal, especially prey or game, or the bull at the end of a bullfight
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2. hunting prey: the prey killed by an animal or human being
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3. military destruction of enemy vehicle: the destroying of an enemy vehicle such as a plane, ship, or tank
(
slang
)
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| [13th century. < assumed Old English cyllan< Germanic] |
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be in at the kill to be present at the end of something or the achievement of an aim, especially when you have worked to cause it
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kill yourself (laughing) to laugh extremely heartily (informal)
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| Word Key: Synonyms |
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kill, murder, assassinate, execute, put to death, slaughter, slay, put down, put to sleep, take somebody's life
CORE MEANING: to deprive of life
kill to cause the death of a person, animal, or other organism;
Floods have killed at least three people and forced hundreds from their homes.
a resolution asking countries not to kill whales for scientific purposes
A severe frost killed all the seedlings.
murder to kill another person deliberately and not in self-defense or with any other extenuating circumstance recognized by law;
She was found guilty of murdering a nursing colleague.
assassinate to kill somebody, especially a political leader or other public figure, by a sudden violent attack;
A police spokesperson told reporters a plot to assassinate the pontiff had been foiled.
execute to kill somebody as part of a legal or extralegal process;
Cromwell ordered the Abbot of Reading to be tried and executed immediately.
put to death to kill somebody, especially in accordance with a legal death sentence;
put to death for treason
slaughter to kill a person or large numbers of people brutally, or to kill farm animals for food;
accused of slaughtering hundreds of unarmed protesters
cattle sent to be slaughtered at two years old
slay (formal or literary) to kill a person or animal;
Cain plotted to slay his brother Abel.
put down or put to sleep to kill an animal in a humane way, especially because it is ill, injured, or in pain;
Some of the animals were beyond help and had to be put down.
I think I'll have to have my poor old dog put to sleep.
take somebody's life to kill a person or yourself;
They were accused of taking the lives of hundreds of innocent women and children.
The verdict of the inquiry into his death was that he had taken his own life. |
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