Pronunciation

/bəˈʌtʃər/

Definitions

Noun

• Butcher: A person who slaughters and prepares meat for sale, typically in a shop or market. Example: “The butcher skillfully carved the roast for the customers.”
• Butcher shop: A retail establishment where meat is sold and prepared.

Verb

• To butcher: To kill and prepare (an animal) for food, often with a lack of skill or care. Example: “The chef butchered the fish, losing a lot of its flesh in the process.”
• To butcher a language: To misuse or misrepresent a language in a clumsy manner. Example: “Her attempts at speaking French were a linguistic butcher’s shop.”

Adjective

• Butchery: The act or process of slaughtering or cutting up meat, often implying brutality or lack of skill. Example: “The butchery of the war crimes was horrifying.”
• Butcherly: Characteristic of or related to a butcher, especially in terms of work or skills. Example: “His butcherly techniques in the kitchen impressed the judges.”

Phrases

• “Buy some meat at the butcher’s” means to purchase fresh cuts of meat from a butcher.
• “A butcher’s block” is a large wooden surface used for preparing meat.
• “Butchered a sentence” refers to a grammatically incorrect or awkward construction.

Example Sentences

• Noun: “I stopped by the butcher’s to buy some fresh steak for dinner.”
• Verb: “The inexperienced cook butchered the chicken, leaving it undercooked.”
• Adjective: “The butchery of the crime scene left no doubt about the perpetrator’s identity.”

Synonyms

• Meat cutter
• Slaughterer
• Carver
• Processor
• Butch (informal, slang)