as in murder
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.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mercy killing
If the mercy killing wasn’t a big enough of a twist, the introduction of three outsiders who stumble upon the girls’ cannibalistic feast will do it.
—
Glenn Garner, Deadline, 17 Mar. 2025
Consider this review a mercy killing.
—The New York Times, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2025
More secrets emerge, Chappelle says there’s no time to explain, even mercy killing the dog.
—Andy Hoglund, EW.com, 19 Jan. 2025
DJ Anne Harris is largely focused on mercy killing her relationship with Siobhan for Siobhan’s own good.
—Keith Phipps, Vulture, 23 May 2021
The doctor carried out the mercy killing with her family’s consent and support.
—Washington Post, 11 Sep. 2019
The woman later gave mixed signals about her desire to die, but the doctor, in close consultation with the woman’s family, decided to go ahead with the mercy killing.
—Mike Corder, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Sep. 2019
In the Bollinger case, a handicapped baby was refused a lifesaving operation in Chicago in 1915, touching off a national debate over mercy killing the mentally disabled.
—Grazie Pozo Christie, National Review, 13 Feb. 2018
In fact, the roots of mercy killing in modern times are lodged in the unsavory and downright savage practices of the last century.
—Grazie Pozo Christie, National Review, 13 Feb. 2018
Glenn Garner, Deadline, 17 Mar. 2025
Consider this review a mercy killing.
—The New York Times, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2025
More secrets emerge, Chappelle says there’s no time to explain, even mercy killing the dog.
—Andy Hoglund, EW.com, 19 Jan. 2025
DJ Anne Harris is largely focused on mercy killing her relationship with Siobhan for Siobhan’s own good.
—Keith Phipps, Vulture, 23 May 2021
The doctor carried out the mercy killing with her family’s consent and support.
—Washington Post, 11 Sep. 2019
The woman later gave mixed signals about her desire to die, but the doctor, in close consultation with the woman’s family, decided to go ahead with the mercy killing.
—Mike Corder, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Sep. 2019
In the Bollinger case, a handicapped baby was refused a lifesaving operation in Chicago in 1915, touching off a national debate over mercy killing the mentally disabled.
—Grazie Pozo Christie, National Review, 13 Feb. 2018
In fact, the roots of mercy killing in modern times are lodged in the unsavory and downright savage practices of the last century.
—Grazie Pozo Christie, National Review, 13 Feb. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mercy killing
Noun
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Monroe County Sheriff’s Office detectives are investigating the murder of a woman whose body was found stuffed into a closet Monday at a Florida Keys resort.—
David Goodhue,
Miami Herald,
9 Apr. 2025
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At the start of Season 5, viewers saw June reckoning with her murder of Commander Fred, which unfolded as a hunt in the woods with other women who’d been in Gilead.—
Abigail Lee,
Variety,
8 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Three and a half years after the homicides, the emotions are still raw.—
Matthew Adams,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
24 Mar. 2025
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Local and state officials are investigating the 26-year-old's death as a homicide.—
Audrey Conklin,
Fox News,
24 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Trump got a temporary reprieve when the markets closed Friday at 4 p.m., but expect the massacre to resume this morning at 9:30 when the opening bell rings at the New York Stock Exchange.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
7 Apr. 2025
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In 2007, the British journalist David Litchfield wrote in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung that guests at a ball at Schloss Rechnitz were invited to shoot Jews for sport—a claim disputed by historians, who do not dispute that the massacre took place.—
James Wood,
New Yorker,
7 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Now!, another Sundance doc about the landmark 1988 student protest that transformed accessibility rights in the U.S.; and Life After, where director Reid Davenport investigates assisted suicide laws for disabled people.—
Etan Vlessing,
The Hollywood Reporter,
25 Mar. 2025
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Marijuana legalization, assisted suicide, voting procedures and school curriculum are additional examples of issues where states have set their own policies.—
Claire B. Wofford,
The Conversation,
27 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mercy killing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mercy%20killing. Accessed 20 Apr. 2025.
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