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Webster's New World College Dictionary » butcherly
butcherly
Variant of butcher
butcher
definition
butcher (bo̵oc̸h′ər)
noun
- a person whose work is killing animals or dressing their carcasses for meat
- a person who cuts up meat for sale
- anyone who kills as if slaughtering animals
- ☆ Informal a person who sells candy, drinks, etc. in theaters, trains, circuses, etc.
Etymology: ME bocher < OFr bochier, bouchier, one who kills and sells he-goats < bouc, he-goat < Frank *bukk, akin to OE bucca: see buck
transitive verb
- to kill or dress (animals) for meat
- to kill (people, game, etc.) brutally, senselessly, or in large numbers; slaughter
- to mess up; botch
Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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