butchery C2+ Topic:Business & Commerce US /ˈbʊtʃəri/ UK /ˈbʊtʃəri/ See IPA manual Minimal pairs Sounds like butcherly /l/ vs /ɹ/ Meanings 1 noun brutal and indiscriminate killing; the trade of a butcher The battlefield was a scene of senseless butchery. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · brutal and indiscriminate... slaughtermassacrecarnagebloodshedkillingmassacring Word family Related forms butcherbutcheress Etymology AI details From butcher + -y; butcher is from Old French bouchier ('slaughterer'), originally 'one who slaughters goats', from bouc ('he-goat'), of Gaulish origin. bouchier Old French bouc Old French View etymology graph -> Topics Business & Commerce Word Formation & Derivatives External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # butchery **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈbʊtʃəri/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈbʊtʃəri/ ## Meanings 1. brutal and indiscriminate killing; the trade of a butcher ## Examples - The battlefield was a scene of senseless butchery. ## Synonyms - slaughter - massacre - carnage - bloodshed - killing - massacring ## Related Forms - butcher - butcheress ## Roots and Affixes - Root: bouchier - Root: bouc ## Etymology From butcher + -y; butcher is from Old French bouchier ('slaughterer'), originally 'one who slaughters goats', from bouc ('he-goat'), of Gaulish origin. ## AI Etymology Butchery is a noun meaning "brutal and indiscriminate killing; the trade of a butcher". Historically, it is from butcher + -y; butcher is from Old French bouchier ('slaughterer'), originally 'one who slaughters goats', from bouc ('he-goat'), of Gaulish origin. The visible construction is part of the etymology: butchery is not just an unanalyzed simple word. The modern meaning, "brutal and indiscriminate killing; the trade of a butcher", follows the base word through the added English ending. The historical chain links Old French bouchier with Old French bouc. Close English family members include butcher, and butcheress. ## Topics - Business & Commerce - Word Formation & Derivatives markdown