Meanings
nounlynching (plural lynchings)
plural lynchings
- Execution of a person by mob action without due process of law, especially by hanging.
The police with difficulty prevented the swaying mass from lynching him on the spot.
1891, Grant Allen, Jerry Stokes1 more example
Atlanta newspapers fanned the flames of racial hatred by carrying stories of lynchings and calling for a renewed Ku Klux Klan to “control” blacks.
2012, Sarah Boslaugh, “Atlanta, Georgia”, in Wilbur R. Miller, editor, The Social History of Crime and Punishment in America: An Encyclopedia, Sage Publications, Inc., →ISBN, page 74
verb
- gerundparticiplepresentpresent participle and gerund of lynch
Origin
Translations
Chinese Mandarin 私刑, 私罰 /私罚
- 私刑 (sīxíng)execution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
- 私罰 /私罚 (sīfá)execution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Finnish lynkkaus
- lynkkausexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
French lynchage
- lynchageexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
German Lynchjustiz
- Lynchjustizexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Greek αυτοδικία, λιντσάρισμα
- αυτοδικία (aftodikía)execution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
- λιντσάρισμα (lintsárisma)execution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
- λυντσάρισμα (lyntsárisma)execution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Hungarian lincselés
- lincselésexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Japanese リンチ, 私刑
- リンチ (rinchi)execution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
- 私刑 (shikei)execution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Korean 린치, 사형
- 린치 (rinchi)execution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
- 사형 (sahyeong)execution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Lithuanian li̇̀nčas
- li̇̀nčasexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Polish samosąd, lincz
- samosądexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
- linczexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
- lynchexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
- lynczexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Portuguese linchamento, linchagem
- linchamentoexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
- linchagemexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Russian самосу́д, суд Ли́нча
- самосу́д (samosúd)execution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
- суд Ли́нча (sud Línča)execution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
- линчева́ние (linčevánije)execution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Spanish linchamiento
- linchamientoexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Swedish lynchning
- lynchningexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Turkish linç etme
- linç etmeexecution of a person without a proper legal trial — see also vigilantism, taking the law into one's own hands
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with lynching
All rhymes →Cite this entry
APA
lynching. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lynching
MLA
“lynching.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lynching. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “lynching,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lynching.
Source: lynching on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.