guillotine

UK:*UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈgɪlətiːn/

US:USA pronunciation: IPAUSA pronunciation: IPA/ˈgɪləˌtin, ˈgiə-/

US:USA pronunciation: respellingUSA pronunciation: respelling(gilə tēn′, gēə-; esp. for v. gil′ə tēn, gē′ə-)


Inflections of 'guillotine' (v): (⇒ conjugate)
guillotines
v 3rd person singular
guillotining
v pres p
guillotined
v past
guillotined
v past p

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025
guil•lo•tine /ˈgɪləˌtin, ˈgiə-/USA pronunciation   n., v., -tined, -tin•ing. 
n. [countable]
  1. a device for cutting off a person's head, consisting of a heavy blade that drops between two posts that guide its fall.

v. [+ object]
  1. to cut the head off (someone) by the guillotine.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025
guil•lo•tine  (gilə tēn′, gēə-; esp. for v. gil′ə tēn, gē′ə-),USA pronunciation n., v., -tined, -tin•ing. 
n. 
  1. a device for beheading a person by means of a heavy blade that is dropped between two posts serving as guides: widely used during the French Revolution.
  2. an instrument for surgically removing the tonsils.
  3. Printingany of various machines in which a vertical blade between two parallel uprights descends to cut or trim metal, stacks of paper, etc.

v.t. 
  1. to behead by the guillotine.
  2. to cut with or as if with a guillotine.
  • named after J. I. Guillotin (1738–1814), French physician who urged its use 1785–95

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
guillotine / ˈɡɪləˌtiːn/
  1. the guillotine a device for beheading persons, consisting of a weighted blade set between two upright posts
  2. execution by this instrument
  3. a device for cutting or trimming sheet material, such as paper or sheet metal, consisting of a blade inclined at a small angle that descends onto the sheet
  4. a surgical instrument for removing tonsils, growths in the throat, etc
  5. Also called: closure by compartment (in Parliament, etc) a form of closure under which a bill is divided into compartments, groups of which must be completely dealt with each day
/ ˌɡɪləˈtiːn/(transitive)
  1. to behead (a person) by guillotine
  2. (in Parliament, etc) to limit debate on (a bill, motion, etc) by the guillotine
Etymology: 18th Century: from French, named after Joseph Ignace Guillotin (1738–1814), French physician, who advocated its use in 1789ˌguilloˈtiner
'guillotine' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
In Lists: Magic, more...

Forum discussions with the word(s) "guillotine" in the title:


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