Meanings
- rareuncountableThe killing of a deer, the slaughter of deer; cervicide.
... until I noticed a mangled carcass splayed across the breakdown lane, decided to stop and inspect it and took notes on the anatomy of victims of vehicular deerslaughter.
2009, Nate Jordon, Various, Monkey Puzzle #6, Monkey Puzzle Press, →ISBN, page 72 more examples
Some centuries ago, in the royal forests of England the penalty was higher for deerslaughter than for manslaughter; but that was unreasonable, and the present arrangement shows the progress of law-reform.
1883, Lippincott's Monthly Magazine: A Popular Journal of General LiteratureThey have behaved badly: charges against them now stand at murder of one kitten, chickenslaughter in the second degree, deerslaughter in the first degree, conspiracy to kill more deer, attempted murder of a goat (two overt acts), ...
1971, Ramparts
Origin
From deer + slaughter. Compare manslaughter.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Catalan cervicidi
- cervicidikilling of deer
Dutch hertmoord
- hertmoordkilling of deer
French cérvicide
- cérvicidekilling of deer
Spanish cervicidio
- cervicidiokilling of deer
Cite this entry
deerslaughter. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/deerslaughter
“deerslaughter.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/deerslaughter. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “deerslaughter,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/deerslaughter.
Source: deerslaughter on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.