kill

See also: Kill and kíll

English

Pronunciation

  • (Received Pronunciation, US, Canada) IPA(key): /ˈkɪl/, [ˈkʰɪɫ]
    • Audio (US):(file)
    • Audio (Southern England):(file)
  • Rhymes: -ɪl

Etymology 1

    From Middle English killen, kyllen, cüllen (“to strike, beat, cut”), of obscure origin. Cognate with Scots kele, keil (“to kill”).

    Compare also Saterland Frisian källe (“to hurt”), Middle Dutch kellen (“to kill, hurt”), Middle Low German kellen, killen (“to ache strongly, cause one great pain”) (whence German Low German kellen, killen (“to hurt, injure, torment, vex”)), Middle High German kellen (“to torment; torture”).

    Alternative forms

    • k1ll (filter-avoidance spelling)

    Verb

    kill (third-person singular simple present kills, present participle killing, simple past and past participle killed)

    1. (transitive) To put to death; to extinguish the life of.
      Smoking kills more people each year than alcohol and hard drugs combined.
      • c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of King Lear”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene vi], page 304:
        A Troope of Horſe with Felt: Ile put't in proofe, / And when I haue ſtolne vpon theſe Son in Lawes, / Then kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill.
      • 1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii], page 12:
        Stephano: Monſter, I will kill this man : his daughter and I will be King and Queene, ſave our Graces : and Trinculo and thy ſelfe ſhall be Vice-royes : […]
      • 2016, Justin O. Schmidt, The Sting of the Wild, Johns Hopkins University Press, →ISBN, page 102:
        Fire ants circumvented the problem of an ineffective sting by having an unusual and highly effective venom that when daubed or sprayed on other ants penetrates their waxy protective integumental barrier and kills or disables them.
      • 2021, Francis A. Boyle, World Politics, Human Rights, and International Law, page 9:
        Indeed, referring to his drone murder extermination campaign Obama bragged: "I'm really good at killing people!" Those are Obama's own words!
      • 2023 February 14, Holly Yan, “5 years after the Parkland school massacre claimed 17 lives, here’s what has changed (and what hasn’t)”, in CNN‎[1], Atlanta, Ga.: Warner Bros. Discovery, archived from the original on 8 October 2025:
        As the country reckons with how to prevent more children from being killed at school, the legacies of the Parkland victims live on.
      • 2024 September 16, Stéphane Foucart, 'To reduce their environmental impact, why not simply regulate the weight of cars?', Le Monde:
        After all, improving road safety has become a widely endorsed cause because nobody wants to kill, or be killed, in a road accident.
      • 2025 March 4, Sharon Otterman, “Trump Threatens Columbia With Millions in Cuts Over Antisemitism Claims”, in The New York Times‎[2], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 12 March 2025:
        In announcing the review, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the new health secretary, said in a statement that “antisemitism — like racism — is a spiritual and moral malady that sickens societies and kills people with lethalities comparable to history’s most deadly plagues.”
    2. (transitive) To render inoperative; to shut off, extinguish, or put out.
      He killed the engine and turned off the headlights, but remained in the car, waiting.
      • 1955, Ian Fleming, “Cards With A Stranger”, in Moonraker, London: Pan Books, published 1959, page 47:
        He reached for his cheroot and gave it a final draw, then killed it in the ashtray.
      • 1965 February, Worlds of If, page 33, column 1:
        He killed the motor.
      • 1978, John Farris, The Fury:
        Peter: Ask Childers if it was worth his arm.
        Policeman: What did you do to his arm, Peter?
        Peter: I killed it, with a machine gun.
    3. (transitive, figuratively) To stop, cease, or render void; to terminate.
      The editor decided to kill the story.
      The news that a hurricane had destroyed our beach house killed our plans to sell it.
      My computer wouldn't respond until I killed some of the running processes.
      • 2022, Liam McIlvanney, The Heretic, page 244:
        He closed the boot, walked round to the kerbside and bent to peer into the car's interior, his face pressed to the passenger window, his hands shading his eyes to kill the reflection.
    5. (transitive, figuratively, hyperbolic) To amaze, exceed, stun, or otherwise incapacitate.
      That night, she was dressed to kill.
      That joke always kills me.
    6. (transitive or intransitive, figuratively, hyperbolic) To cause great pain, discomfort, or distress to; to hurt.
      These tight shoes are killing my feet.
      You don't ever want to get rabies. The doctor will have to give you multiple shots and they really kill.
      • 2008 October, Davy Rothbart, “How I caught up with dad”, in Men's Health, volume 23, number 8, →ISSN, page 110:
        two laps into our first walk, my dad needed to sit down. His back and legs were killing him. "You'll be okay," I assured him. "You just need to shake off the rust."
        I gave him a couple of Advil and, after a few minutes, urged him back onto the track.
    7. (transitive, figuratively) To produce feelings of dissatisfaction or revulsion in.
      It kills me to throw out three whole turkeys, but I can't get anyone to take them and they've already started to go bad.
      It kills me to learn how many poor people are practically starving in this country while rich moguls spend such outrageous amounts on useless luxuries.
      • 2015 May 12, Rachel Platten, Jon Levine, Scott Jacoby, “Congratulations”, in Fight Song‎[3], performed by Rachel Platten:
        And I really don't think you get it now
        No, I really don't think you get it now
        It's killing me, I admit it now
        Congratulations, you tore my heart out
        Congratulations
    8. (transitive) To use up or to waste.
      I'm just doing this to kill time.
      • 2001, Jonathan Franzen, The Corrections:
        Except for the shirt, which he’d worn, and the check, which he’d cashed, and the bottle of port, which he’d killed in bed on Christmas night, the gifts from his family were still on the floor of his bedroom.
    9. (transitive, figuratively, informal) To overpower, overwhelm, or defeat.
      Look at the amount of destruction to the enemy base. We pretty much killed their ability to retaliate.
      The team had absolutely killed their traditional rivals, and the local sports bars were raucous with celebrations.
    10. (transitive) To force a company out of business.
    11. (figuratively, informal, hyperbolic, transitive) To punish severely.
      My parents are going to kill me!
    12. (transitive, sports) To strike (a ball, etc.) with such force and placement as to make a shot that is impossible to defend against, usually winning a point.
      • 2011 February 4, Gareth Roberts, “Wales 19-26 England”, in BBC‎[4], archived from the original on 10 September 2026:
        That close call encouraged Wales to launch another series of attacks that ended when lock Louis Deacon killed the ball illegally in the shadow of England's posts.
    13. (transitive, sports) To cause (a ball, etc.) to be out of play, resulting in a stoppage of gameplay.
      • 2015 May 10, Nathan Schmook, “Billings vs Bont”, in St Kilda Football Club‎[5], archived from the original on 6 August 2019:
        As the ball was delivered deep into St Kilda's forward line by Billings, Bontempelli had position on the goal line, with a pack forming in front of him. He decided to fly but didn't kill the ball, leaving it to spill where he had been positioned moments earlier. Jack Sinclair gratefully swooped and kicked a goal that cut the margin to five points.
    14. To succeed with an audience, especially in comedy.
      • 2012, Yael Kohen, We Killed: The Rise of Women in American Comedy‎[6]:
        When comics fail, they "die"; when they succeed, they "kill."
      • 2016 February 23, Tim Gray, “Chris Rock Tests Jokes at Comedy Clubs Ahead of Oscars”, in Variety‎[7], archived from the original on 23 August 2026:
        You really killed it at the Comedy Store last night.
    15. (mathematics, transitive, informal) To cause to assume the value zero.
    16. (computing, Internet, IRC, transitive) To disconnect (a user) involuntarily from the network.
    17. (metallurgy) To deadmelt.
    18. (slang) To sexually penetrate in a skillful way.
      • 1992, Ice Cube, “It Was A Good Day”, in The Predator:
        I felt on her big fat fanny
        Pulled out the jammy and killed the punanni
    19. (reflexive, informal) To exert oneself to an excessive degree.
      Don't kill yourself raking the leaves now; we're due for a windstorm tonight.
    Conjugation
    Conjugation of kill
    infinitive (to) kill
    present tense past tense
    1st-person singular kill killed
    2nd-person singular kill, killest† killed, killedst†
    3rd-person singular kills, killeth† killed
    plural kill
    subjunctive kill killed
    imperative kill —
    participles killing killed

    † Archaic or obsolete.

    Synonyms
    Hyponyms
    Translations
    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
    Translations to be checked

    Noun

    kill (plural kills)

    1. The act of killing.
      The assassin liked to make a clean kill, and thus favored small arms over explosives.
      • 1957, Sydney J. Bounds, The Robot Brains, London: Digit Books, page 100:
        The blonde women were in a frenzy of excitement, their faces transformed from dull moronity to living evil; they shouted like wild animals at the kill.
    2. Specifically, the death blow.
      The hunter delivered the kill with a pistol shot to the head.
    3. The result of killing; that which has been killed.
      The fox dragged its kill back to its den.
    5. (military, gaming, countable) An instance of killing; a score on the tally of enemy personnel or vehicles killed or destroyed.
      Hyponym: shootdown
      confirmed kills
      A flying ace is usually one with five or more confirmed kills.
    6. (volleyball) The grounding of the ball on the opponent's court, winning the rally.
      • 2011, the 34th Catawba College Sports Hall of Fame, in Catawba College's Campus Magazine, Spring/Summer 2011, page 21:
        As a senior in 1993, Turner had a kill percentage of 40.8, which was a school record at the time and the best in the SAC. Turner concluded her volleyball career with 1,349 kills, ranking fifth all-time at Catawba.
    Hyponyms
    Translations

    Etymology 2

    Etymology tree
    Proto-Indo-European *ǵeyH-der.
    Proto-Indo-European *ǵi(H)-l-der.
    Proto-Germanic *kiljǭ
    Proto-West Germanic *killjā
    Old Dutch *killa
    Middle Dutch kille
    Dutch kilbor.
    English kill

      Borrowing from Dutch kil (formerly spelled kill), from Middle Dutch kille, from Old Dutch *killa, from Proto-West Germanic *killjā, from Proto-Germanic *kiljǭ (“fissure, slit; a type of stream, creek, channel”). Doublet of Kiel.

      Most place names with kill were derived entirely in Dutch, but many have been subsequently calqued into English or anglicized by folk etymology; for example, Motherkill and Murderkill both likely derive from Dutch *Modderkil (“Mud Creek”) (better preserved in Mudder Kill and Muddy Kill), originally having nothing to do with mothership or murder.

      Noun

      kill (plural kills)(Northeastern US, chiefly New York)

      1. (archaic or regional, largely fossilized in place names) A creek or stream; (more loosely) any watercourse, such as a channel or arm of the sea.
        The channel beyond Staten Island, which connects Newark Bay with Bergen Neck is the Kill van Kull, or the Kills.
        1. (preceded by the) In particular, a waterway with a name ending in kill, such as the Beaverkill or the East Kill.
          We're gonna go flyfishing over in the kill.
      Usage notes
      • No longer seems to be productive, whether for deriving new compounds or discussing waterways not already called Kill. Almost exclusively used in proper names based on waterways, mainly tributaries of the Hudson and Delaware rivers and a few saltwater channels of New York City. The region in which they are found comprises southeastern New York State and adjacent parts of other states, i.e. former New Netherland, itself roughly coinciding with Lenapehoking plus Mohican land, the area having been settled and (re)named by Dutch colonists in the 17th century prior to English acquisition. Compare the geographic term clove for a similar case; hook (from hoek) and -burg are also found as a second element of Dutch-origin toponyms.
      Alternative forms
      • Kill (proper noun, short form of compound names), Kills (plurale tantum)
      • 'kill (short form of some compound names)
      Derived terms
      • Anthony Kill
      • Arthur Kill (modified by folk etymology)
      • Basher Kill (modified by folk etymology)
      • Batavia Kill
      • Beaver Kill (calque)
      • Beer Kill (modified by folk etymology)
      • Bronx Kill
      • Bush Kill
      • Dutch Kills
      • Dwarf Kill
      • East Kill
      • Elk Bushkill
      • English Kills
      • Fall Kill
      • Fishkill (calque)
      • Foxenkill (calque)
      • Fox Kill (probable calque)
      • Fresh Kills
      • Great Kills
      • Jan Casper's Kill (calque)
      • Lakes Kill
      • Little Beaver Kill
      • Little Bush Kill
      • Little Red Kill
      • Louse Kill
      • low-kill shelter
      • Mine Kill
      • Moccasin Kill
      • Moses Kill (modified by folk etymology)
      • Motherkill (possibly mistranslated calque)
      • Muddy Kill (calque)
      • Murderkill (possibly mistranslated calque, modified by folk etymology)
      • Northkill (⇒ Northkill Creek; Little Northkill Creek)
      • Owl Kill
      • Ox Kill
      • Panther Kill
      • Pine Kill
      • Plotter Kill (modified by folk etymology)
      • Punch Kill (modified by folk etymology)
      • Red Kill (likely calque)
      • Roaring Kill
      • Saw Kill, Sawkill (⇒ Sawkill Creek)
      • Sawyer Kill (calque)
      • Shawangunk Kill (⇒ Little Shawangunk Kill)
      • Snook Kill (calque)
      • Stony Kill (⇒ Stony Kill Falls)
      • the Kills
      • West Kill

      Places:

      • Alplaus Kill
      • Anthony Kill
      • Arthur Kill
      • Basher Kill, Bashes Kill
      • Batten Kill
      • Beaver Kill, Beaverkill; Little Beaver Kill
      • Beerskill, Beer Kill; Beer Kill Creek
      • Bozen Kill
      • Broadkill; Broadkill River; Broadkill Sound
      • Bronx Kill
      • Bush Kill, Bushkill; Bushkill Creek; Big Bushkill Creek
      • Casperkill; Jan Casper's Kill
      • Catskill, Catskills; Catskill Creek; Catskill Mountains
      • Cobleskill; Cobleskill Creek
      • Compaanen Kill
      • Cottekill; Cottekill Brook
      • Coxing Kill
      • Cresskill
      • Cromakill; Cromakill Creek; Cromakill Marsh
      • Delphus Kill
      • Dowers Kill
      • Dwaar Kill, Dwars Kill
      • Elk Bushkill
      • Evas Kill
      • Fantine Kill, Fonteyn Kill
      • Fishkill; Fishkill Creek; East Fishkill
      • Fonteyn Kill
      • Foxenkill
      • Jan De Bakkers Kill
      • Kaaterskill; Kaaterskill Clove; Kaaterskill Creek; Kaaterskill Falls
      • Keyser Kill
      • Kill
      • Kill Van Kull
      • Klein Kill, Kline Kill
      • Krum Kill
      • Lakes Kill
      • Landsman Kill
      • Lansing Kill
      • Lisha Kill
      • Louse Kill
      • Mannayunk Kill
      • Maritje Kill
      • Mine Kill
      • Moordener Kill
      • Moses Kill
      • Mudder Kill
      • Muitzes Kill, Muitzeskill; Muitzes Kill Historic District
      • Murderkill, Murder Kill, Mother Kill, Motherkill, Murtherkill; Murder Kill Creek, Motherkiln Creek; Murderkill River
      • Normans Kill
      • Otter Kill
      • Ox Kill
      • Paulins Kill
      • Peekskill; Peekskill Hollow Creek
      • Peters Kill
      • Phillipin Kill
      • Platte Kill, Plattekill, Plotter Kill; Plattekill Creek; Plotter Kill Preserve
      • Poestenkill
      • Punch Kill
      • Quacken Kill, Quackenkill
      • Raymondskill; Raymondskill Falls
      • Red Kill; Little Red Kill
      • Rhinebeck Kill
      • Roeliff Jansen Kill
      • Sanders Kill
      • Sandsea Kill
      • Schuylkill; Schuylkill River; Little Schuylkill River; West Branch Schuylkill River
      • Snook Kill
      • Spackenkill
      • Sparkill; Sparkill Creek
      • Stony Kill; Stony Kill Falls
      • Swartekill
      • Switz Kill
      • Tenakill
      • Tremper Kill
      • Twaalfskill; Twaalfskill Creek
      • Valatie Kill
      • Verf Kill
      • Verkeerder Kill; Verkeerder Kill Falls
      • Ver Nooy Kill
      • Vloman Kill
      • Vossenkill, Vozenkill
      • Wallkill; Wallkill River; Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge
      • Whortlekill; Whortlekill Creek
      • Wynants Kill, Wynantskill
      Translations
      body of water

      Etymology 3

      Noun

      kill (plural kills)

      1. (rare) Alternative form of kiln.
        • 1878, Llewellynn Frederick William Jewitt, The Ceramic Art of Great Britain from Pre-historic Times Down to the Present Day, page 39:
          This very curious and valuable record is as follows, in the handwriting of Conyers and the accompanying engraving is carefully reduced (see Fig. 138 ) from Conyers' own drawing:—“This kill was full of the coarser sorts of potts or cullings, so that few were saved whole, viz., lamps, bottles, urnes, dishes.
        • 1945, Arthur Edwin James, The Potters and Potteries of Chester County, Pennsylvania, page 34:
          The stack of one of the pottery kills is still a visible land mark of this once thriving industry.
        • 1951, Bulletin - Eastern States Archeological Federation, page 11:
          A funerary ceremony comparable to that reported from Kolomoki site is indicated, though no "pottery kill” was located.
        • 2000, Argo - Volume 43, Issue 1, page 59:
          We may indeed assume that cracked and broken ware was discarded in the immediate vicinity of the pottery kills, that is, if it was not thrown in to the Krka.
        • 2015, Kirilka Stavreva, Words Like Daggers, page 77:
          Admonished that she should “keep the woman's virtue and be more silent,” she countered “that she was 'born in a mill, begot in a kill, she must have her will,' she could speak no softlier.”

      Derived terms

      terms derived from the noun or verb

      Cahuilla

      Adverb

      kíll

      1. not

      Dutch

      Etymology

      Borrowed from Sranan Tongo kel (“guy, dude”).

      Pronunciation

      • IPA(key): /kɪl/
      • Audio:(file)
      • Rhymes: -ɪl
      • Homophone: kil

      Noun

      kill m (plural kills, diminutive killie n)

      1. (Netherlands, slang) guy, dude
        • 2023 February 15, Prof. Soortkill, “Alles is ontworpen, maar niet alles is designer [Everything is designed, but not everything is 'designer']”, in NRC Handelsblad‎[8], archived from the original on 14 November 2025:
          Die kill draagt geeneens designer dan wil hij me komen chanten, wats met hem!?
          That guy doesn't even wear designer clothes, still he wants to flirt with me, what's wrong with him?

      German

      Pronunciation

      Verb

      kill

      1. singular imperative of killen
      2. (colloquial) first-person singular present of killen

      Livonian

      Verb

      kill

      1. obsolete spelling of ki’llõ

      References

      Luxembourgish

      Pronunciation

      • IPA(key): /kil/
      • Rhymes: -il

      Etymology 1

      From Middle High German küel, from Old High German kuoli, from Proto-West Germanic *kōl(ī), from Proto-Germanic *kōlaz.

      Cognate with German kühl, English cool, Dutch koel, Low German kool.

      Adjective

      kill (masculine killen, neuter killt, comparative méi kill, superlative am killsten)

      1. cool
      Declension
      Declension of kill
      singular plural
      masculine feminine neuter
      predicative hien ass kill si ass kill et ass kill si si(nn) kill
      nominative /
      accusative       		attributive and/or after determiner killen kill killt kill
      independent without determiner killes killer
      dative after any declined word killen killer killen killen
      as first declined word killem killem

      Etymology 2

      Verb

      kill

      1. second-person singular imperative of killen

      Spanish

      Etymology

        Unadapted borrowing from English kill.

        Pronunciation

        • IPA(key): /ˈkil/ [ˈkil]
        • Rhymes: -il
        • Syllabification: kill

        Noun

        kill f (plural kills)

        1. (gaming) a kill; a score on the tally of enemy personnel or vehicles killed or destroyed.

        Usage notes

        According to Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) prescriptions, unadapted foreign words should be written in italics in a text printed in roman type, and vice versa, and in quotation marks in a manuscript text or when italics are not available. In practice, this RAE prescription is not always followed.

        Ter Sami

        Etymology

        From Proto-Sami *kielë.

        Noun

        kill

        1. language

        Derived terms

        Further reading

        • Eino Koponen, Klaas Ruppel, Kirsti Aapala, editors (2002–2008), Álgu database: Etymological database of the Saami languages‎[9], Helsinki: Research Institute for the Languages of Finland
        This page is issued from Wiktionary. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.