euthanasia

noun

eu·​tha·​na·​sia ˌyü-thə-ˈnā-zh(ē-)ə 

: the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals (such as persons or domestic animals) in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy

euthanasic

ˌyü-thə-ˈnā-zik 

-sik

adjective

Did you know?

Where does euthanasia come from?

Euthanasia is a mass noun (or noncount noun), that is, a noun used only in the singular form.

The word comes from the Greek euthanatos, which means “easy death.” In English, euthanasia has been used in exactly this sense since the early seventeenth century, when Francis Bacon described the phenomenon as “after the fashion and semblance of a kindly & pleasant sleepe.” Nowadays, the word usually refers to the means of attaining such a death.

Examples of euthanasia in a Sentence

a physician who refuses to practice euthanasia

Recent Examples on the Web

Although euthanasia is the only viable option due to the volume of pythons in the region, the team takes stoic pride in following strict rules for treating each snake humanely when the time comes. —Longreads, 25 Oct. 2024

Those tests identified two additional positives in the Taylor barn, resulting in their euthanasia. —John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2024

Last year, the actor and director, 44, saved the canines — Max, a 2-year-old Shepherd/Husky mix, and Jack, a 3-year-old Mastiff mix — from euthanasia, only hours before they were scheduled to be killed. —Nicholas Rice, People.com, 28 Sep. 2024

Most of the time, the animal dies, either as a direct consequence of the experiment or from euthanasia. —Celia Ford, Vox, 6 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Greek, easy death, from euthanatos, from eu- + thanatos death — more at thanatos

First Known Use

1605, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

euthanasia

noun

eu·​tha·​na·​sia ˌyü-thə-ˈnā-zh(ē-)ə 

: the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured persons or animals with as little pain as possible for reasons of mercy

called also mercy killing

Medical Definition

euthanasia

noun

eu·​tha·​na·​sia ˌyü-thə-ˈnā-zh(ē-)ə 

: the act or practice of causing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals (such as persons or domestic animals) in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy

called also mercy killing

Legal Definition

euthanasia

noun

eu·​tha·​na·​sia ˌyü-thə-ˈnā-zhə 

: the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured persons in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy

called also mercy killing

euthanasic

-ˈnā-zik, -sik 

adjective