Added 8 October 2026

murder

/ˈmɜːdə(ɹ)/ noun

In Latin: interfectiō, homicīdium, nex Wiktionary

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about murder at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

An act of killing a person unlawfully, especially with predetermination.
Throwing that punch was a murder whether you meant for it to happen or not.
The crime of killing a person unlawfully, especially with predetermination.
The defendant was charged with murder.
Short for felony murder, the act of committing or abetting a crime that results in the killing of a person, regardless of intent, even if the perpetrator did not directly kill the victim.
Both the arsonist and her partner were charged with murder, even though they had intended for it to be a victimless crime.

To illegally kill with intent, especially with predetermination
The woman found dead in her kitchen was murdered by her husband.
To kill violently.
My uncle’s dog murdered my cat.
To defeat decisively.
Our team is going to murder them.

From Middle English murder, murdre, mourdre, alteration of earlier murthre (“murder”) (see murther), from Old English morþor (“secret slaying, unlawful killing”) and Old English myrþra (“murder, homicide”), both from Proto-West Germanic *morþr, from Proto-Germanic *murþrą (“death, killing, murder”), from Proto-Indo-European *mr̥tro- (“killing”), from Proto-Indo-European *mer-, *mor-, *mr̥- (“to die”). Akin to Gothic 𐌼𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌸𐍂 (maurþr, “murder”), Old High German mord (“murder”), Old Norse morð (“murder”), Old English myrþrian (“to murder”) and morþ.