1
a
: a person who slaughters animals or dresses their flesh
b
: a dealer in meat
2
: one that kills ruthlessly or brutally
3
: one that bungles or botches
4
: a vendor especially on trains or in theaters
butchered; butchering
ˈbu̇-chə-riŋ 
ˈbu̇ch-
1
: to slaughter and dress for market
butcher hogs
2
: to kill in a barbarous manner
3
: botch
butchered the play
Synonyms
Examples of butcher in a Sentence
Noun
the newest intern on the campaign is a butcher when it comes to writing press releases
Verb
They've hired someone to butcher the hogs.
Many innocent people were butchered under his regime.
The band has butchered my favorite song.
Recent Examples on the Web
Michael Goldstein, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024
The museum is being co-founded by Jonathan Bender, a food writer and barbecue judge, and Alex Pope, a chef who owns a whole animal butcher shop.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Oct. 2024
Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 26 Sep. 2024
The measure’s passage would shut down a lamb slaughter plant that butchers up to 500,000 lambs per year, accounting for between 15 and 20 percent of all US lamb meat.
—Marina Bolotnikova, Vox, 10 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for butcher 
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Noun
Industrial Eats bills itself as a restaurant and butcher shop.
—Michael Goldstein, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024
The museum is being co-founded by Jonathan Bender, a food writer and barbecue judge, and Alex Pope, a chef who owns a whole animal butcher shop.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Oct. 2024
Verb
As the narrative begins, Lois is called in on the horrifying quintuple homicide of a family butchered in ritualized and exotically culinary fashion.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 26 Sep. 2024
The measure’s passage would shut down a lamb slaughter plant that butchers up to 500,000 lambs per year, accounting for between 15 and 20 percent of all US lamb meat.
—Marina Bolotnikova, Vox, 10 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for butcher
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Cite this Entry
“Butcher.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/butcher. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
butcher
1 of 2 noun
butch·er
ˈbu̇ch-ər
1
a
: one whose business is killing animals for sale as food
b
: a dealer in meat
2
: a person who kills in large numbers or in a brutal manner
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