variants
also hari-kari
as in suicide
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Recent Examples of hara-kiri
When the soldiers, instead of rising up, jeered at him, Mishima killed himself in the classic samurai fashion: performing hara-kiri, or seppuku (as the Japanese more commonly call it), by plunging a sword into his abdomen before a uniformed disciple sliced his head off.
—
Ian Buruma, The New Yorker, 6 Jan. 2025
The film depicts the historical ‘Honno-ji Incident’ from 1582, when a key vassal of Oda Nobunaga rose in revolt and caused his master to commit hara-kiri in Kyoto.
—Mark Schilling, Variety, 17 Apr. 2023
Ian Buruma, The New Yorker, 6 Jan. 2025
The film depicts the historical ‘Honno-ji Incident’ from 1582, when a key vassal of Oda Nobunaga rose in revolt and caused his master to commit hara-kiri in Kyoto.
—Mark Schilling, Variety, 17 Apr. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hara-kiri
Noun
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Davis has pleaded not guilty to the murder and gang enhancement charges.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA TODAY,
20 Feb. 2025
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The defense meanwhile argued O’Keefe was killed inside the home and taken back outside while Read, a financial analyst and adjunct professor at Bentley College, was framed for the murder.—
David Matthews,
New York Daily News,
19 Feb. 2025
Noun
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The group has also been linked to five other homicides in Vermont, California and Pennsylvania.—
Escher Walcott,
People.com,
18 Feb. 2025
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Her death was ruled a homicide, with the cause of death confirmed to be strangulation and blunt-force injuries to the head and neck.—
Lissete Lanuza Sáenz,
StyleCaster,
18 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Three people have been arrested and officers with the Texas Department of Public Safety are seeking another person in connection with the slaying of a Hood County father, officials said.—
Lillie Davidson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
15 Feb. 2025
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Daquan Pierce, Marcus Mathis, Cordero Miller, Joseph O. Smith and Brian Emory are charged in connection with that slaying, court records show.—
Meredith Colias-Pete,
Chicago Tribune,
6 Feb. 2025
Noun
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But on Wednesday, a grand jury indicted her on the charge of assisting self-murder/manslaughter, a first-degree felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison.—
Frank Fernandez,
USA TODAY,
24 Feb. 2023
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The initial charge of first-degree murder has been reduced to assisting self-murder/manslaughter.—
Frank Fernandez,
USA TODAY,
24 Feb. 2023
Noun
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But homicide investigators were assigned the case after a woman called police to repot her suspicions of foul play, according to testimony at Vo’s trial.—
Nate Gartrell,
The Mercury News,
19 Feb. 2025
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Authorities initially reported no indication of foul play, but as one talking head in the documentary special explains, that December's autopsy report revealing ketamine in his system immediately altered the official narrative.—
Ryan Coleman,
EW.com,
18 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hara-kiri.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hara-kiri. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025.
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