kill

/ˈkil/

Middle English, perhaps from Old English *cyllan; akin to Old English cwellan to kill

verb

  1. to deprive of life : cause the death of

  2. to slaughter (an animal) for food

  3. to convert a food animal into (a kind of meat) by slaughtering

a disease that has killed thousands

kill slay murder assassinate dispatch execute mean to deprive of life. kill merely states the fact of death caused by an agency in any manner. slay is a chiefly literary term implying deliberateness and violence but not necessarily motive.

noun

  1. an act or instance of killing

  2. a decisive act that conclusively secures something (such as a deal or win)

  3. something killed: such as

an animal moving in for the kill

noun

  1. channel, creek —used chiefly in place names in Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New York