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
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 Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 14 Jan. 2026
Casual Counters Come Back Fatback, Chicago Barbecue champ Charlie McKenna’s new place in the Loop is a combination sandwich shop, butcher counter and specialty market (think high-end pantry staples like pastas, sauces and olive oil).
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 13 Jan. 2026
Jon Lee Anderson, New Yorker, 15 Jan. 2026
Because the puppies were found near a site where ancient humans had butchered woolly mammoths, researchers had wondered whether they might be domesticated dogs, as opposed to wolves.
—Evan Bush, NBC news, 14 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for butcher
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Noun
Our brisket comes in the same as a butcher would get it, untrimmed.
—Verb
Now sixty-five, Petro is a survivor of a brutal era in which the Colombian state assassinated leftist leaders and butchered their followers, in an effort to quell the country’s Marxist guerrilla forces.
—Cite this Entry
“Butcher.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/butcher. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
Kids 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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