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Glite Dictionary
felo-de-se

felo-de-se

9.9
A person who kills themselves
  • noun
  • /ˈfɛloʊ dɪ ˈseɪ/
  • Archaic
: suicidio
  • It reasserts that suicide is a felo-de-se (a felony against oneself), a crime against God and the king.

Examples

  • In historical legal discussions, someone deemed a felo de se would not receive a proper burial.

  • The court classified his tragic death as a felo de se, highlighting the legal implications of suicide.

  • Many societies viewed acts of suicide as felo de se, prompting both legal and moral debates.

Synonyms

suicide
vsfelo-de-se
  • NSFW
108 5.2

A person who ends their own life on purpose

is used mainly in historical or legal language and sometimes refers to the act

Antonyms

life
∞ 1.0

The time from birth to death when a person is alive

Surface Forms

felo-de-se singular
felo-de-ses plural

Etymology

The word felo-de-se comes from an old Latin phrase that uses felon, a word for a criminal, plus de and se meaning 'of' and 'self'. So a felo-de-se was a person who was treated as a criminal for killing themselves, and the term now means someone who commits suicide.