bloody murder

adverb

Synonyms of bloody murdernext
: in a loud and violent manner
ran off, screaming bloody murder
also : in vehement protest
screaming bloody murder over the pay cut

Examples of bloody murder in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
This one comes with sledgehammer and a penchant for bloody murder. — Alex Ritman, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Sep. 2023 Sweetpea is a darkly comic, slow-burning thriller about self-discovery, complete with manipulation and bloody murder. — Barry Levitt, Time, 24 Apr. 2025 Like Frank, Rick is obsessed with desire, but his ultimate goal is to commit bloody murder, rather than indulge in a series of increasingly elaborate hookups. — Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2025 After a bloody murder sends a high school party into a panic, Winnie ends up saving her brother Jimmy (Aiden Howard) by killing Waters. — J. Kim Murphy, Variety, 10 Nov. 2023 The media, Democrats and their NGO allies are crying bloody murder, but most Americans employed in the private sector understand that layoffs are an unpleasant fact of working life. — Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 3 Mar. 2025 Donovan’s death leads directly to the ballet company pulling its classic Nutcracker sets out of storage and Noelle being cast as Clara, after all, so in Harris’s mind, all’s well that ends well (with a literally bloody murder). — Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2025 Two people, including a Port Authority police officer, were left dead and an 86-year-old woman was clinging to life Thursday following a bloody murder-suicide in the Bronx, police sources said. — Emma Seiwell, New York Daily News, 22 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1833, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bloody murder was in 1833

Rhymes for bloody murder

See All Rhymes for bloody murder

Browse Nearby Words

bloody-minded
bloody murder
bloody murrain
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bloody murder.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bloody%20murder. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for bloody murder

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