Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The act or practice of ending the life of a person or animal having a terminal illness or a medical condition that causes suffering perceived as incompatible with an acceptable quality of life, as by lethal injection or the suspension of certain medical treatments.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun An easy, tranquil death; death of an easy, painless kind.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun An easy death; a mode of dying to be desired.
  • noun the act or process of putting to death for humane purposes; -- used to refer to the killing of animals in order to relieve or avoid pain.

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

  • noun The practice of intentionally and painlessly killing a human being or animal for humane reasons, especially in order to end great suffering or poor quality of life.
  • noun obsolete An easy death, or the means to bring about such a death.

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

  • noun the act of killing someone painlessly (especially someone suffering from an incurable illness)

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Greek euthanasiā, a good death : eu-, eu- + thanatos, death.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

First attested in 1606, from Ancient Greek εὐθανασία (euthanasia), from εὐ- (eu-, "good") + θάνατος (thanatos, "death")

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Examples

  • While People Cut the Heads Off Children by Abortion in All 50 States, Some States Seek Ban On Gas Euthanasia of Shelter Animals Six states are considering proposals to ban carbon monoxide gas chamber use in animal shelters as a means of euthanasia, in response to animal rights supporters who say the process is inhumane.

    ProLifeBlogs 2009

  • According to Wikipedia, the term euthanasia come from the Greek words “eu” and “thanatos” which combined means “good death.”

    Archive 2007-10-01 Mother Jones RN 2007

  • According to Wikipedia, the term euthanasia come from the Greek words “eu” and “thanatos” which combined means “good death.”

    The Good Death Mother Jones RN 2007

  • He and co-author Dr Ken Flegel write that physicians should stop "using the term euthanasia to describe the actions we might take to help dying patients and stop using such value-laden terms as starve and kill to explain those medical actions."

    Winnipeg Sun 2010

  • The word euthanasia comes from the Greek language and literally means "good or happy death"

    Reasons to Believe - 2009

  • If you think euthanasia is covered in Section 1233, get some cash loans and get a hobby.

    Wonk Room » Anti-Immigrant Hate Group Director Dan Stein Thinks ‘Illegal Aliens’ Will Receive Health Care 2009

  • My position on euthanasia is actually derived from the ancient Greek one; that is, I am generally in favour of allowing it, as long as the person being euthanized is in perfectly sound mental condition, not non compos mentis, and has positively re-affirmed his decision at least three times over the period of at least a suspended period of time to allow for reconsideration (say 15 or 30 days).

    Matthew Yglesias » Bishops and Abortion 2010

  • The discussion over euthanasia is often a conflict of different values, including: autonomy family, community, faith traditions, society beneficence care provider values

    The Values and Ethics of Euthanasia : Law is Cool 2009

  • Given that our health care system costs significantly less than the US system, and that euthanasia is in any event relatively rare, I assure you that cost cutting has nothing whatsoever to do withit.

    The Volokh Conspiracy » Life-Without-Parole Sentence for Under-18 Offender Unconstitutional, When the Crime Is Not Homicide 2010

  • In the early summer of 1940 he was ordered to the Sonnenstein euthanasia centre.

    Five People Born on May Day | myFiveBest 2010

Comments

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  • Good-bye — if you hear of my being stood up against a Mexican stone wall and shot to rags please know that I think that a pretty good way to depart this life. It beats old age, disease, or falling down the cellar stairs. To be a Gringo in Mexico — ah, that is euthanasia!

    Ambrose Bierce

    October 31, 2007

  • Love it, skipvia. Thanks.

    October 31, 2007

  • Sounds like 'youth in Asia'.

    October 31, 2007

  • Haha, kewpid, that was my first thought, too.

    October 31, 2007

  • The Japanese population has the highest proportion of centenarians in the World, so maybe "youth in Asia" is not inappropriate!

    October 31, 2007

  • Don't forget the P.O.D. song "Youth of the Nation," which is about school shootings.

    October 31, 2007