homicidal

adjective

ho·​mi·​cid·​al ˌhä-mə-ˈsī-dᵊl  ˌhō- 

: of, relating to, or tending toward homicide

homicidally

ˌhä-mə-ˈsī-dᵊl-ē 

ˌhō-

adverb

Synonyms

• bloodthirsty
• bloody
• bloody-minded
• murdering
• murderous
• sanguinary
• sanguine
• sanguineous

Examples of homicidal in a Sentence

court-appointed psychiatrists have described the accused as a sociopath with homicidal tendencies who is a danger to himself and others

Recent Examples on the Web

The teen’s cause of death was determined to be homicidal asphyxia, or suffocation. —Ellen Moynihan, New York Daily News, 23 Feb. 2025

Like Samantha, Gabriela is doing everything in her power to protect the citizens in the mountain bunker, albeit in much less homicidal ways. —Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 18 Feb. 2025

The fact that Russia now fields one of the world’s most homicidal armies can partially be explained by photos such as this. —Gary Shteyngart, The Atlantic, 7 Feb. 2025

Facebook Justine's official cause of death was listed as homicidal violence. —Natalie Morales, CBS News, 15 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1725, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for homicidal

• fratricidal
• fungicidal
• genocidal
• germicidal
• herbicidal
• intertidal
• suicidal
• apsidal
• subtidal
• bridal
• bridle
• idle

Kids Definition

homicidal

adjective

ho·​mi·​cid·​al ˌhäm-ə-ˈsīd-ᵊl 

ˌhō-mə-

: of, relating to, or having tendencies toward the killing of another person : murderous

homicidally

-ˈsīd-ᵊl-ē 

adverb

Medical Definition

homicidal

adjective

ho·​mi·​cid·​al ˌhäm-ə-ˈsīd-ᵊl  ˌhō-mə- 

: of, relating to, or tending toward homicide

homicidally

-ᵊl-ē 

adverb

Legal Definition

homicidal

adjective

ho·​mi·​ci·​dal ˌhä-mə-ˈsīd-ᵊl, ˌhō- 

: of, relating to, or tending toward homicide