frequently_asked_questions_files/Oxford Thesaurus.pdf

in, bump or knock off, hit, polish off, snuff (out), take for a
ride, US waste, rub out, ice, fit with concrete overshoes or a
wooden kimono: He was the third police officer to be killed
this year. 2 destroy, ruin, devastate, ravage, wreak or work
havoc (up)on, kill off: The entire orange crop was killed by
the sudden frost. 3 muffle, neutralize, deaden, damp, silence,
nullify, dull, absorb, smother, stifle, suppress, still: This
padding should kill the noise of the motor. 4 exhaust, tire
(out), fatigue, weary, Colloq fag (out): Pushing that mower all
day nearly killed me. 5 hurt, pain, torment, torture: These
shoes are killing me. 6 quash, suppress, defeat, veto, cancel:
The tobacco interests campaigned to kill the bill to ban smoking
in public places. 7 consume, use up, spend, while away, occupy,
fill, pass, idle: While waiting, I killed time doing a
crossword puzzle.
--n. 8 game, prey; quarry: The lioness allowed her cubs to eat
part of the kill. 9 death, killing, end, finish, deathblow,
coup de grƒce; termination, denouement or d‚nouement,
conclusion: She wants to be in at the kill.
killer n. 1 murderer, assassin, slayer, cutthroat, butcher,
exterminator, Bluebeard, (Jack the) ripper, Slang US torpedo,
hit man, triggerman, gunsel, hooligan, gunfighter, iceman,
hatchet man: What are the statistics on the number of killers
who are not caught? 2 Slang old-fashioned bee's knees, US
humdinger, doozy, killer-diller (from Manila), lallapalooza or
lollapalooza, lulu, daisy, dilly: The new show at the Odeon is
a killer.
killing n. 1 murder, carnage, butchery, execution, slaughter,
bloodshed, death, massacre, genocide, liquidation, mass murder
or destruction, decimation, extermination, blood bath,
manslaughter; slaying, homicide, fatality: The killing of
dissidents must stop. There has been another killing in the
park. 2 coup, bonanza, success, windfall, stroke of luck, gain,
profit, Colloq Brit bomb: They've made a killing on the Stock
Exchange.
--adj. 3 devastating, ruinous, destructive, punishing,
exhausting, debilitating, fatiguing, tiring, enervating,
difficult, arduous: How can you keep up the killing pace of
having two jobs?