killing
/ˈkɪl.ɪŋ/ adjective, noun, proper noun
Also a form of kill
Forms killings
- adjective That literally deprives of life; lethal, deadly, fatal.
- adjective (dated, idiomatic) Devastatingly attractive.
- adjective (informal, idiomatic) That makes one ‘die’ with laughter; very funny.
- noun The act of killing.
- noun An instance of someone being killed.
- noun (informal, usually as make a killing) A large amount of money. “He made a killing on the stock market.”
- proper noun A surname.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Middle English kyllyng; equivalent to kill + -ing.
Webster’s 1913
- adjective Literally, that kills; having power to kill; fatal; in a colloquial sense, conquering; captivating; irresistible.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “killing”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details