I. ˈkil verb
Etymology: Middle English, perhaps from Old English * cyllan; akin to Old English cwellan to kill — more at quell
Date: 14th century
transitive verb
1.
a. : to deprive of life : cause the death of
b.
(1) : to slaughter (as a hog) for food
(2) : to convert a food animal into (a kind of meat) by slaughtering
2.
a. : to put an end to
kill competition
b. : defeat , veto
kill ed the amendment
c. : to mark for omission ; also : delete
d. : annihilate , destroy
kill an enemy
3.
a. : to destroy the vital or essential quality of
kill ed the pain with drugs
b. : to cause to stop
kill the motor
c. : to check the flow of current through
4. : to make a markedly favorable impression on
she kill ed the audience
5. : to get through uneventfully
kill time
also : to get through (the time of a penalty) without being scored on
kill a penalty
6.
a. : to cause extreme pain to
b. : to tire almost to the point of collapse
7. : to hit (a shot) so hard in various games that a return is impossible
8. : to consume (as a drink) totally
intransitive verb
1. : to deprive one of life
2. : to make a markedly favorable impression
was dressed to kill
Synonyms:
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
killed in an accident
frost killed the plants
slay is a chiefly literary term implying deliberateness and violence but not necessarily motive
slew thousands of the Philistines
murder specifically implies stealth and motive and premeditation and therefore full moral responsibility
convicted of murdering a rival
assassinate applies to deliberate killing openly or secretly often for political motives
terrorists assassinated the Senator
dispatch stresses quickness and directness in putting to death
dispatched the sentry with one bullet
execute stresses putting to death as a legal penalty
executed by lethal gas
II. noun
Date: 1814
1.
a. : an act or instance of killing
b. : a decisive act that conclusively secures something (as a deal or win)
2. : something killed: as
a.
(1) : an animal shot in a hunt
(2) : animals killed in a hunt, season, or particular period of time
b. : an enemy unit (as an airplane or ship) destroyed by military action
c. : a return shot in any of various games (as badminton, handball, or table tennis) that is too hard for an opponent to handle
III. noun
Usage: often capitalized
Etymology: Dutch kil
Date: 1669
: channel , creek — used chiefly in place names in Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New York