carnage

Meanings

1. 1noununcountable

   The killing of large numbers of people, especially in a war or attack.

   Grammar: No plural or article: the carnage of war.

   Patterns

   • the carnage of something
   • scenes of carnage

   Rescue workers were shocked by the carnage after the bombing.

   The general wanted to end the carnage on both sides.

   Photographs from the battlefield showed terrible carnage.

2. 2noununcountablefigurativeinformal

   A scene of great damage, destruction or chaos.

   Grammar: Often used loosely or humorously for mess or disaster: carnage on the roads.

   Patterns

   • carnage on something

   The shop after the sale was total carnage, with clothes strewn everywhere.

   Holiday traffic caused carnage on the highway.

   There was carnage in the kitchen after the kids made pancakes.

Common combinations

scenes of carnage

The reporter described scenes of carnage.

cause carnage

The storm caused carnage across the coast.

carnage on the roads

Icy weather led to carnage on the roads.

sheer carnage

The film's final battle is sheer carnage.

end the carnage

Leaders called for a ceasefire to end the carnage.

Synonyms and how they differ

slaughter

Slaughter stresses brutal, often one-sided killing, and it can also describe killing animals.

massacre

Massacre refers to a specific event where many people are killed, often defenseless.

bloodshed

Bloodshed highlights the violence and blood spilled, and is used more generally.

devastation

Devastation means severe destruction, which need not involve killing.

Opposites

Word family

carnal adjective

relating to the body and its desires

carnivore noun

an animal that eats meat

carnival noun

a festival, whose name may also be linked to flesh

Commonly confused: carnage or carnation? carnage or carnival?

Practice

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Write a sentence using “carnage”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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