regicide:
(plural: ‘regicides‘; for the right pronunciation of this word, please click here)
‘Regicide’ is more commonly used to refer to the act of deliberately killing a king or a queen.
a person who either kills a king or a queen or who is responsible for the death of a king or a queen,
Julius Cesar (on the floor) and his regicides, those who stabbed him to death
e.g.
Each of the monarchs of the past was either killed or imprisoned by at least one of the other heirs to the throne, and immediately after the successful plot of killing the king/queen, the regicide would occupy the throne, and would rule the kingdom until another regicide plots for his/her own death!
The regicides who stabbed Julius Caesar, the emperor of ancient Rome, to death were his own senators, including his very close associate, Brutus.
In the modern day usage, politicians who deceive or disobey their high command orders and vote against thier own party decisions in parliament sessions are figuratively called ‘regicides’ because losing an issue to the Opposition is worse than being literally killed.
For an informative article that explains what a regicide is, please
click here, for an article about the regicides of Charles I, please
click here and for an interesting podcast that discusses regicide in detail, please
click here.
Note: A “patricide” is a person who kills or has killed his/her own father; a ‘matricide’ is a person who kills or has killed his/her own mother; a ‘parricide or parenticide’ is a person who kills or has killed his/her own parents and any other close relatives; a “fratricide” is a person who kills or has killed his/her own brother; a ‘sororicide‘ is a person who kills or has killed his/her own sister; a “uxoricide” is a man who kills or has killed his wife; a “mariticide or viricide” is a woman who kills or has killed her husband; a “filicide or prolicide” is a person who kills or has killed his/her own children; an “infanticide” is a person who kills or has killed very young baby/infant; and a “homicide” is a person who kills another person, not necessarily his/her relative, and a ‘suicide‘ is a person who kills himself or herself and the act of killing oneself. And all the ‘..cides’ are used not only to refer to the persons involved but also to refer to ‘the act of killing somebody’.
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About the Author:BC Kumar
BC Kumar, an English Language Teacher, taught in numerous countries including Ethiopia, Oman and India, shares his knowledge and passion for the English Language.
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