slaughter
n. C / Un. the act of killing animals for food, or the violent killing of many people at once. It describes a scene of great death and destruction.
n. the killing of animals for food or the brutal, indiscriminate killing of a large number of people. Often used figuratively in sports to describe a one-sided defeat.
The farmer took the cows to the market for slaughter.
The historical documentary detailed the brutal slaughter of innocent civilians during the final days of the war.
The general was haunted by the memory of the senseless slaughter on the battlefield, where thousands of young men fell in a single afternoon of fighting.
Uncountable when referring to the general practice of killing livestock; countable when referring to specific historical events or massacres.