Skip to main content
femicide

femicide

1 8.8
Killing a woman or girl because she is female
  • noun
  • /ˈfɛmɪˌsaɪd/
  • NSFW
: femicidio
  • Many Western feminists and advocates for victims of domestic violence have confused Western domestic violence or domestic femicide (the two are different) with the honor killings of older-age victims.
  • domestic femicide
  • Western femicide
  • violence and femicide

Examples

  • This is extremely rare in a Western domestic femicide; the husband who kills his wife in the West is rarely assisted by members of his family of origin or by his in-laws.

    Academic text (2010)
  • They should be the subject of a future study and offered compassionate assistance in escaping this scourge of femicide.

    Academic text (2015)
  • However, Western domestic femicide differs significantly from honor killing.

    Academic text (2010)
  • The femicides issue is too complex to discuss at length here.

    Academic text (2008)
  • The rise in femicide is a grave issue that highlights the dangers women face simply because of their gender.

  • Many activists are working tirelessly to raise awareness about femicide and its impact on society.

  • Reports indicate that femicide rates have escalated dramatically, prompting calls for stronger legal protections for women.

Surface Forms

femicide singular
femicides plural

Morphology

femicide = femi + cide

The meaning is fairly clear from the combining form femi- 'woman/female' and the suffix -cide 'killing', but the first element is not a standalone everyday English word.

Etymology

Femicide comes from two Latin parts: femina meaning 'woman' and -cide meaning 'to kill'. Think of it like homicide or suicide, but for the killing of women, which is why it means the killing of a woman because of her gender.