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fratricide

[ fra-tri-sahyd ]

noun

  1. the act of killing one's brother or a member of one’s own tribe or group.
  2. a person who kills their brother or a member of their own tribe or group.


fratricide

/ ˈfreɪ-; ˈfrætrɪˌsaɪd /

noun

  1. the act of killing one's brother
  2. a person who kills his brother
  3. military the destruction of or interference with a nuclear missile before it can strike its target caused by the earlier explosion of a warhead at a nearby target
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


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Derived Forms

  • ˌfratriˈcidal, adjective
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Other Words From

  • frat·ri·cid·al [fra-tri-, sahyd, -l], adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of fratricide1

First recorded in 1490–1500; fratricide ( def 1 ) from Middle French, from Late Latin frātricīdium, equivalent to frātricīd(a) frātri- (combining form of frāter ) brother + -cīda -cide + -ium noun suffix; fratricide ( def 2 ) from Middle French, from frātricīda
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Word History and Origins

Origin of fratricide1

C15: from Latin frātricīda ; see frater 1, -cide
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Example Sentences

Hillary Rodham Clinton must be reveling in the latest round of Republican fratricide.

When Cain was first shut up in the prison of the Law he felt no pang at the fratricide he had committed.

A minute ago you were a fratricide, and now, thanks to the absolution that I gave you, you are white as snow.

Aye—even a fratricide—because forsooth of the crime of the grace that her brother possessed?

On his accession he had not found it necessary to clear his path and prevent further trouble by the usual remedy of fratricide.

Not that it signifies in the least in Nepaul whether a man is a fratricide or prefers making away with more distant relatives.

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