victim
pronunciation
How to pronounce victim in British English:
UK [ˈvɪktɪm]
How to pronounce victim in American English:
US [ˈvɪktɪm]
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- Noun:
- an unfortunate person who suffers from some adverse circumstance
- a person who is tricked or swindled
Word Origin
- victim
- victim: [15] Victim originally denoted a ‘person or animal killed as a sacrifice’; the more general notion of ‘someone who suffers from or is killed by something’ is a secondary development. The word was borrowed from Latin victima, which may be related to German weihen ‘consecrate’.
- victim (n.)
- late 15c., "living creature killed and offered as a sacrifice to a deity or supernatural power," from Latin victima "person or animal killed as a sacrifice." Perhaps distantly connected to Old English wig "idol," Gothic weihs "holy," German weihen "consecrate" (compare Weihnachten "Christmas") on notion of "a consecrated animal." Sense of "person who is hurt, tortured, or killed by another" is recorded from 1650s; meaning "person oppressed by some power or situation" is from 1718. Weaker sense of "person taken advantage of" is recorded from 1781.
Example
- 1. The sinking chinese economy is claiming another victim .
- 2. How 's it feel to be a disgruntled victim ?
- 3. The victim here is sgt. crowley , not professor gates .
- 4. In the post-colonial period penang fell victim to the rise of nationalism .
- 5. She was the youngest victim , and the first to be buried .