butchery

C2+ Topic:Word Formation & Derivatives

US /ˈbʊtʃəri/ UK /ˈbʊtʃəri/ See IPA manual

Minimal pairs

Sounds like butcherly /l/ vs /r/

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... slaughter massacre carnage bloodshed killing massacring

Word family

Related forms butcherbutcheress

Etymology

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

Word Formation & Derivatives General Vocabulary

External links

# 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
- Word Formation & Derivatives
- General Vocabulary

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