Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The act of executing lynch-law upon a person; the killing of a person by a mob under pretense of summary justice.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Execution of a person by mob action without due process of law, especially hanging
  • noun Any act of violence inflicted by a mob upon the body of another person.
  • verb Present participle of lynch.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun putting a person to death by mob action without due process of law

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

See etymology section of lynch article.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word lynching.

Examples

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • My adjectival use: 'The lynching mob killed hundreds of people.'

    August 22, 2011