1
: the flesh of slain animals or humans
a multitude of dogs came to feast on the carnage—
T. B. Macaulay
T. B. Macaulay2
: great and usually bloody slaughter or injury (as in battle)
the carnage of war
Synonyms
Examples of carnage in a Sentence
Reporters described the highway accident as a scene of carnage.
the appalling carnage in that war-torn country requires that the outside world intervene
Recent Examples on the Web
Painted on slabs of vinyl affixed to the brick, the mural — a large rectangle about the size of the building’s ground floor — featured a background that appeared to depict mass graves, weeping mothers, drones and other scenes of carnage in Gaza.
—Andrew Lapin, Sun Sentinel, 14 Jan. 2025
Los Angeles will remain under a Red Flag Warning on Thursday as multiple fires across the county have caused unprecedented and historic carnage and destruction, wasting away 45 square miles, amounting to the size of the city of San Francisco.
—Kevin Dolak, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Jan. 2025
The only real trace of the carnage that unfolded New Year's Day was a makeshift memorial with candles and flowers near the intersection of Bourbon and Canal Streets.
—Christopher Cann, USA TODAY, 4 Jan. 2025
There was little trace of the carnage that unfolded as a U.S. Army veteran drove a pickup into revelers in the early hours of New Year’s Day — except for a small memorial with flowers on the corner of Bourbon and Canal Streets, where the attack occurred.
—Isabelle Taft, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for carnage 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Andrew Lapin, Sun Sentinel, 14 Jan. 2025
Los Angeles will remain under a Red Flag Warning on Thursday as multiple fires across the county have caused unprecedented and historic carnage and destruction, wasting away 45 square miles, amounting to the size of the city of San Francisco.
—Kevin Dolak, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Jan. 2025
The only real trace of the carnage that unfolded New Year's Day was a makeshift memorial with candles and flowers near the intersection of Bourbon and Canal Streets.
—Christopher Cann, USA TODAY, 4 Jan. 2025
There was little trace of the carnage that unfolded as a U.S. Army veteran drove a pickup into revelers in the early hours of New Year’s Day — except for a small memorial with flowers on the corner of Bourbon and Canal Streets, where the attack occurred.
—Isabelle Taft, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for carnage
Dictionary Entries Near carnage
Cite this Entry
“Carnage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/carnage. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share