: the act of causing the death of a fetus

Examples of feticide 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.
Alabama didn’t have a feticide law, nothing on the books about feticide as a crime. Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Dec. 2023 The extra steps of injecting a child with feticide to stop her heart or ripping her limbs off of her body are not needed to care for the mother. Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024 Dargan, 30, has been charged with murder, feticide and the possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime. Harriet Sokmensuer, PEOPLE.com, 8 Oct. 2021 He was convicted on two counts of malice murder, feticide, exploitation and intimidation of disabled adult, and two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, the DA’s office said. Tanasia Kenney, Miami Herald, 13 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for feticide

Word History

First Known Use

1842, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of feticide was in 1842

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Feticide.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/feticide. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Medical Definition

feticide

noun
fe·​ti·​cide
variants or chiefly British foeticide
: the action or process of causing the death of a fetus
feticidal adjective

Legal Definition

: the act of causing the death of a fetus
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!