guillotine
A machine used for the application of capital punishment by decapitation, consisting…A machine used for the application of capital punishment by decapitation, consisting of a tall upright frame from which is suspended a heavy diagonal-edged blade which is dropped onto the neck of the person to be executed; also, execution using this machine.
Recorded UK: Speaker: I learned some phrases Recorder: I learned some phrases, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
Translations
9 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 2
By meaning 2
Examples
20 sentencesMeaning
5 senses(also, figuratively, historical)A machine used for the application of capital punishment by decapitation, consisting of a tall upright frame from which is suspended a heavy diagonal-edged blade which is dropped onto the neck of the person to be executed; also, execution using this machine.
Guillotine, Fallbeil
гильоти́наgilʹotína
гільйоти́наhilʹjotýna
A device or machine with a cutting blade.
(broadly)A device used for cutting the pages of books, stacks of paper, etc., to straight edges, usually by means of a hinged or sliding blade attached to a flat platform.
Papierschneider
ре́зальная маши́наrézalʹnaja mašína, ре́зательная маши́наrézatelʹnaja mašína
(broadly)An instrument with a sliding blade for cutting the tonsils, uvula, or other body parts.
More meanings 2
(UK, broadly, informal)A parliamentary procedure for fixing the dates when various stages of discussion of a bill must end, to ensure that the enactment of the bill proceeds expeditiously.
(US, broadly, informal)A legislative motion that debate be ended and a vote taken; a cloture.
- closure imposed on the debate of specific sections of a bill
- instrument of execution that consists of a weighted blade between two vertical poles; used for beheading people
Origin
Borrowed from French guillotine, named after the French physician Joseph-Ignace GuillotinBorrowed from French guillotine, named after the French physician Joseph-Ignace Guillotin (1738–1814), who proposed its use for capital punishment.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
plural: guillotines| Singular | guillotine |
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| Plural | guillotines |
regular
Synonyms
1 synonyms- closure imposed on the debate of specific sections of a bill:closure by compartment
Word family
8 related wordsSee also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.