killer
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈkɪlə(ɹ)/
ipa: [ˈkʰɪlə(ɹ)]
ipa: /ˈkɪlɚ/
ipa: [ˈkʰɪɫlɚ]
rhymes: -ɪlə(ɹ)
Forms: form: killers
Etymology: From Middle English killer, kyller. By surface analysis, kill + -er.
Senses: examples: text: There’s a killer on the loose.
text: My cat is a habitual bird killer.
text: Carbon monoxide is a silent killer.
glosses: One who or that which kills.
examples: text: That test was a killer.
text: The final hill in the race course was a killer.
glosses: That which causes stress or is extremely difficult, especially that which may cause failure at a task.
examples: text: Digital streaming platforms are CD killers.
glosses: Something that is so far ahead of its competition that it effectively kills off that competition.
examples: text: Picture perfect, you don't need no filter / Gorgeous, make 'em drop dead, you're a killer
ref: 2020, “Intentions”, in Changes, performed by Justin Bieber ft. Quavo:
glosses: A remarkably impressive person or thing.
topics: hobbies
lifestyle
sports
glosses: A knockout form of darts or pool involving several players.
examples: text: There is, however, one species of whale that habitually preys upon other warm-blooded animals—the killer whale. Really a large dolphin, the killer was classified by Linnaeus as Orcinus orca, and by Cope as Grampus rectipinna.
ref: 1966, Sarah Regal Riedman, Elton T. Gustafson, Home is the Sea: for Whales, page 116:
glosses: Ellipsis of killer whale.
glosses: A club used for killing fish.
topics: hobbies
lifestyle
philately
glosses: A particularly heavy type of handstamp, or portion of one, often obscuring a large part of the postage stamp.
examples: text: In the course of its adaptation to non-Indo-Aryan languages, the Burmese script has acquired some features that distinguish it from other Indic scripts. The killer, or virama, participates in some common constructions that would be clumsy to handle the way they would be in the other Indic scripts, so the control function of the virama is separated from the diacritic function of the killer. The virama, 0F4D is used to form conjunct consonants, while the killer, 0F52, is a simple diacritic and has no effect on character shaping. The killer is also combined with the VOWEL SIGN O (0F4B) to form the low level tone vowel “o.” When used this way, this symbol is known as hyei hto, or “thrust forward.”
ref: 1992, Andy Daniels, Joe Becker, “Unicode Technical Report #1 - Burmese, Khmer, and Ethiopia”, in Unicode Consortium:
text: For example, although the ‘vowel killer’ diacritic may be called a ‘pulli’ in Tamil, it is still referred to by the Unicode character names as a ‘virama’.
ref: 2002, Richard Ishida, “An Introduction to Indic Scripts”, in W3C:
text: Thai words that have been borrowed from Sanskrit, Pali and English usually try to retain as much of the original spelling as possible; as this will often produce pronunciations that are impossible or misleading, a ‘killer’ symbol is placed above the redundant consonant to indicate that it may be ignored
ref: 2002, David Smyth, Thai: An Essential Grammar:
text: Sometimes the ‘killer’ sign, called kaaran in Thai, cancels out not only the consonant above which it appears, but also the one immediately preceding it.
ref: 2002, David Smyth, Thai: An Essential Grammar:
glosses: Synonym of virama (“kind of diacritical mark”).
synonyms: word: virama
extra: kind of diacritical mark
Synonyms: word: homicide
word: homicider
word: killer
Hyponyms: word: archmurderer
word: assassin
word: assassinator
word: bane
word: bloodshedder
word: bravo
word: butcher
word: contract killer
word: deathmonger
word: femicide
word: head hunter
word: head-hunter
word: headhunter
word: hitman
word: hatchetman
word: mass murderer
word: massacrer
word: murderer
word: murderess
word: ripper
word: serial killer
word: slayer
word: spree killer
word: trigger man
word: cannibal
word: despatcher
word: dispatcher
word: euthaniser
word: euthanizer
word: exterminator
word: hunter
word: man-eater
word: man-killer
word: slaughterer
word: manslaughterer
word: manslayer
word: suicide
word: suicidee
word: suicider
word: archer
word: cutthroat
word: disemboweller
word: drowner
word: eviscerator
word: garroter
word: gunman
word: lyncher
word: shooter
word: smotherer
word: sniper
word: stabber
word: strangler
word: swordsman
word: poisoner
word: beheader
word: carnifex
word: electrocutioner
word: executioner
word: hangman
word: headsman
Derived terms: baby-killer
boner-killer
category killer
Christ-killer
cicada killer
coach killer
color killer
colour killer
contract killer
cop killer
cop-killer
cowboy killer
cow killer
craic killer
deal killer
desk killer
doctor killer
false killer whale
fly killer
fool killer
giant-killer
giantkiller
godkiller
honour killer
honor killer
hunter-killer
joy killer
killer application
killer app
killerball
killer bee
killer cancel
killer diller
killeress
killer game
killer green bud
killer instinct
killerish
killer language
killer litter
killerly
killer poke
killership
killer sudoku
killer T cell
ladykiller
lady-killer
lady killer
mankiller
man-killer
mercy killer
mosskiller
mule killer
natural killer
natural killer cell
nigger killer
nigger-killer
nine-killer
nonkiller
pain killer
painkiller
passion killer
prawn killer
roach killer
salmon killer
self-killer
serial killer
serial killer glasses
serial killer van
serial-killer van
shipkiller
silent killer
snake-killer
spam killer
spree killer
tank killer
tarantula killer
thrill-killer
thrill killer
time killer
time-killer
USB killer
vowel killer
weedkiller
Related terms: word: fighter
word: mercenary
word: soldier
word: terrorist
word: warrior
word: kill
word: killing
word: criminal