mercy killing

mercy killing
noun
the act of killing someone painlessly (especially someone suffering from an incurable illness)
Syn: ↑euthanasia
Hypernyms: ↑killing, ↑kill, ↑putting to death

* * *

noun, pl ⋯ -ings
: the killing of someone who is very sick or injured in order to prevent any further suffering
[count]

Some called her death a mercy killing.

[noncount]

He is opposed to mercy killing. [=euthanasia]

* * *

ˈmercy killing [mercy killing] noun countable, uncountable
the act of killing sb out of pity, for example because they are in severe pain
Syn: euthanasia

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • mercy killing — mer·cy kill·ing n: euthanasia Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996. mercy killing …   Law dictionary

  • mercy killing — mercy killings N VAR A mercy killing is an act of killing someone who is very ill, in order to stop them suffering any more pain …   English dictionary

  • mercy killing — mercy .killing n [U and C] the act of killing someone who is very ill or old so that they do not have to suffer any more = ↑euthanasia …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • mercy killing — mercy ,killing noun count or uncount the act of killing someone who is dying to stop them from suffering anymore: EUTHANASIA …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • mercy killing — n. EUTHANASIA …   English World dictionary

  • mercy killing — UK / US noun [countable/uncountable] Word forms mercy killing : singular mercy killing plural mercy killings the act of killing someone who is dying in order to stop them from suffering any longer …   English dictionary

  • mercy killing — {n. phr.} The act of killing a terminally ill patient or animal in order to avoid further suffering. * /Mercy killing of humans is illegal in most countries, yet many doctors practice it secretly./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • mercy killing — {n. phr.} The act of killing a terminally ill patient or animal in order to avoid further suffering. * /Mercy killing of humans is illegal in most countries, yet many doctors practice it secretly./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • mercy\ killing — n. phr. the act of killing a terminally ill patient or animal in order to avoid further suffering. Mercy killing of humans is illegal in most countries, yet many doctors practice it secretly …   Словарь американских идиом

  • mercy killing — Synonyms and related words: bane, blood, bloodletting, bloodshed, braining, dealing death, destruction, destruction of life, dispatch, euthanasia, execution, extermination, flow of blood, gore, immolation, kill, killing, lapidation, martyrdom,… …   Moby Thesaurus

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