carcass
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈkɑɹkəs/
ipa: /ˈkɑːkəs/
rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)kəs
Forms: form: carcasses
form: carcase
Etymology: Dated from the late 13th Century C.E.; from Anglo-Norman carcois, possibly related to Old French charcois. Cognate with French carcasse. But cf. also Avestan 𐬐𐬀𐬵𐬭𐬐𐬁𐬯𐬀 (kahrkās, “vulture”), and Middle Persian [Book Pahlavi needed] (klkʾs /⁠kargās⁠/, “vulture”), whence Persian کرکس (karkas, “vulture”).
Senses: examples: text: The forest was covered in dog carcass.
text: Plate 31, figure B shows a desiccated carcass in the ventral position with a sharp S curvature in the vertebral column. Such pronounced drying-out of a carcass probably happens only when it is quickly carried to a dry place and exposed to the strong rays of the sun.
ref: 1989, Johannes Weigelt, Recent Vertebrate Carcasses and Their Paleobiological Implications, page 152:
text: Despite all of the groups' experiences with leopards and carcasses in trees, neither the vervets nor the baboons gave alarm calls at the sight of the carcass alone.
ref: 1992, Dorothy L. Cheney, Robert M. Seyfarth, How Monkeys See the World: Inside the Mind of Another Species, page 284:
text: Instead, the majority of studies involve freezing the carcasses until time permits the analysis.
ref: 2005, Maria S. Johnson, Tim R. Nagy, “Chapter 10: Animal Body Composition Methods”, in Steven B. Heymsfield, Timothy G. Lohman, ZiMian Wang, Scott B. Going, editors, Human Body Composition, 2nd edition, page 141:
glosses: The body of a dead animal, especially a vertebrate or other animal having flesh.
examples: text: 1961, D. M. Doty, John C. Pierce, Beef Muscle Characteristics as Related to Carcass Grade, Carcass Weight, and Degree of Aging, US Department of Agriculture, Technical Bulletin No. 1231, page 33,
Lean flavor scores for this muscle were lower than those for ribeye, especially in Prime grade carcasses.
text: The most important is the carcass but the liver, kidneys and, to a limited extent, various other visceral components also have value as food items.[…]For example, the carcasses from sheep and cattle have the head removed immediately after slaughter but in pigs this may be delayed until after chilling and further butchery.
ref: 2000, P. D. Warriss, Meat Science: An Introductory Text, page 20:
text: In some countries, there is still a significant trade in chicken carcasses that have been plucked, but not eviscerated, by the producer. Subsequently, the carcass may be eviscerated by a butcher or in the kitchen of the consumer.
ref: 2000, Geoffrey C. Mead, Fresh and Further-Processed Poultry, Barbara Lund, Tony C. Baird-Parker (editors), Microbiological Safety and Quality of Food, page 464:
qualifier: meat trade
glosses: The body of a slaughtered animal, stripped of unwanted viscera, etc.
examples: text: He saw a human carcass while digging a hole and ran away screaming.
text: And when their ſcattered armie is ſubdu’d: / And you march on their ſlaughtered carkaſſes, / Share equally the gold that bought their liues, / And liue like Gentlmen in Perſea, […]
ref: c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire; London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act II, scene ii:
text: And the carkeiſes of this people ſhall be meate for the fowles of the heauen, and for the beaſts of the earth, and none ſhall fray them away.
ref: 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Jeremiah 7:33, column 1:
glosses: The body of a dead human, a corpse or cadaver.
examples: text: A Churliſh Envious Curr vvas gotten into a Manger, and there lay Growling and Snarling to keep the Horſes from their Provender. The Dog Eat None himſelf, and yet rather Ventur'd the Starving his Own Carcaſe then he would ſuffer any thing elfe to be the Better for't.
ref: 1692, Roger L’Estrange, “[The Fables of Æsop, &c.] Fab[le] LXXVI. A Dog in a Manger.”, in Fables, of Æsop and Other Eminent Mythologists: […], London: […] R[ichard] Sare, […], →OCLC, page 75:
text: "If you saw the care she takes over hoisting her beastly old carcass up and down those stairs, you could make a sure bet against her having another accident there."
ref: 1950, Norman Lindsay, Dust or Polish?, Sydney: Angus and Robertson, page 165:
glosses: The body of a live person or animal.
examples: text: The tyres used on DC-8s have a tread portion that contains three fabric re-enforcing layers. These layers protect the tyre carcass to some extent against foreign object damage. A tyre tread, however, does not contribute to the carcass integrity^([sic]); even when a tyre is worn to the third fabric layer, the normal change point, it does not lose any structural integrity. The mandatory change point for a tyre is when it is worn to the carcass layer; however, at this point, the tyre could not undergo a retread.
ref: 1993 June, Presidency of Civil Aviation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, “1.16.5 Wear Characteristics of Aviation Tyres”, in McDonnell-Douglas DC-8-61, C-GMXQ, accident at King Abdulaziz International Airport, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on 11 July 1991, archived from the original on 14 May 2022:
glosses: The framework of a structure, especially one not normally seen.
topics: nautical
transport
glosses: An early incendiary ship-to-ship projectile consisting of an iron shell filled with saltpetre, sulphur, resin, turpentine, antimony and tallow with vents for flame.
Synonyms: corpse
Derived terms: carcassless
carcasslike
carcass weight
Related terms: cadaver
carrion
corpse