femicide

noun

fem·​i·​cide ˈfe-mə-ˌsīd How to pronounce femicide (audio)
plural femicides
: the gender-based murder of a woman or girl by a man
There have been calls for a "national shutdown" to protest femicide in South Africa.—Africa Check
… speaks to a generation of young people fed up with femicides, sexual assault, and the ever more pervasive violence in Mexico.—Cody Copeland

Examples of femicide 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.
The film addresses the topic of femicide in the name of a misguided sense of family honor. — Leo Barraclough, Variety, 16 June 2026 Tima and Guerrier both said that often the assumption in cases of abuse and femicide is that the woman provoked the man. — Miami Herald, 16 May 2026 The series confronts, head-on and without easy answers, themes such as toxic relationships, femicide and patriarchy. — Zac Ntim, Deadline, 8 June 2026 The media usually get Black femicide wrong Another problem surrounding intimate partner homicide inflicts its harms after death. — Sativa Banks, The Conversation, 4 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for femicide

Word History

Etymology

femi- (in Latin fēmina "woman") + -cide (after homicide) — more at feminine entry 1

First Known Use

1976, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of femicide was in 1976

Rhymes for femicide

See All Rhymes for femicide

Browse Nearby Words

femic
femicide
feminal
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Femicide.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/femicide. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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