Word
lynching
Phoneticslynch·ing
US/ˈɫɪntʃɪŋ/
UK/lˈɪntʃɪŋ/
Definition
n. the act of a group of people killing someone without a legal trial. It is a violent crime often used to scare or control a specific group of people.
n. the extrajudicial execution of an individual by a mob, typically carried out to maintain social control or intimidate a minority group. Often involves hanging and is historically associated with racial violence.
Examples
“The museum documents the history of lynching in the region.”
“The historian explained how lynching was used as a tool of terror to prevent people from voting.”
“Scholars argue that lynching represented a complete breakdown of the rule of law, where communal violence replaced formal judicial proceedings to enforce informal social hierarchies.”
Examples
simple
“The museum documents the history of lynching in the region.”
contextual
“The historian explained how lynching was used as a tool of terror to prevent people from voting.”
complex
“Scholars argue that lynching represented a complete breakdown of the rule of law, where communal violence replaced formal judicial proceedings to enforce informal social hierarchies.”
Usage
Uncountable when referring to the practice in general; countable when referring to specific historical incidents.
Real-World Examples
“Local concern over her death has been heightened by the fact that the state has a dark history of racial violence and lynchings.” “The Trees is a daring satire on racism, generational guilt and cultural complicity, inspired by the lynching of Emmett Till.” Etymology
From lynch + -ing, see lynch.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
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englishreference.com/q/lynching