Definition

1. Verb:
   • To kill someone, especially as an official punishment ordered by a legal authority. This phrase specifically refers to the act of carrying out a death sentence.

Usage

• This verb phrase is used in formal or legal contexts to describe the act of legally killing someone as a punishment for a crime.
• It is typically used in the passive voice (e.g., "was put to death") or with an object (e.g., "to put someone to death").
• It implies the action is sanctioned by a governing or judicial system.

Examples

• Verb:
  • The convicted traitor was put to death by firing squad.
  • The king ordered his rivals to be put to death.
  • In that era, people could be put to death for heresy.

Advanced Usage

• "to be put to death": The most common construction, describing the fate of the person being executed.
  • The prisoners were put to death at dawn.
• The phrase can be used in historical, legal, or news reporting contexts to convey the formal and severe nature of execution.

Variants and Related Words

• Execute (verb): To carry out a death sentence. This is a more direct synonym often used in legal language.
  • The state executed the murderer.
• Execution (noun): The act of putting someone to death.
  • The execution was carried out humanely.

Synonyms

• Execute: To kill someone as a legal punishment.
• Carry out a death sentence: A more descriptive phrase with the same meaning.

Related Phrases

• Condemned to death: Refers to the sentencing phase, before the act of "putting to death" is carried out.
  • He was condemned to death for his crimes.
• Face execution: To be in a situation where one is to be put to death.
  • The prisoners faced execution the following week.

Verb

1. kill as a means of socially sanctioned punishment
   • In some states, criminals are executed