hol·o·caust (h l  -kôst , h l-)n. 1. Great destruction resulting in the extensive loss of life, especially by fire. 2. a. Holocaust The genocide of European Jews and others by the Nazis during World War II: "Israel emerged from the Holocaust and is defined in relation to that catastrophe" (Emanuel Litvinoff). b. A massive slaughter: "an important document in the so-far sketchy annals of the Cambodian holocaust" (Rod Nordland). 3. A sacrificial offering that is consumed entirely by flames. [Middle English, burnt offering, from Old French holocauste, from Latin holocaustum, from Greek holokauston, from neuter of holokaustos, burnt whole : holo-, holo- + kaustos, burnt (from kaiein, to burn).] hol o·caustal, holo·caustic adj.Usage Note: Holocaust has a secure place in the language when it refers to the massive destruction of humans by other humans. Ninety-nine percent of the Usage Panel accepts the use of holocaust in the phrase nuclear holocaust. Sixty percent of the Panel accepts the sentence As many as two million people may have died in the holocaust that followed the Khmer Rouge takeover in Cambodia. But because of its associations with genocide, people may object to extended applications of holocaust. When the word is used to refer to death brought about by natural causes, the percentage of the Panel accepting drops sharply. Only 31 percent of the Panel approves the sentence In East Africa five years of drought have brought about a holocaust in which millions have died. In a 1987 survey, just 11 percent approved the use of holocaust to summarize the effects of the AIDS epidemic. This suggests that other figurative usages such as the huge losses in the Savings and Loan holocaust may be viewed as overblown or in poor taste. · When capitalized Holocaust refers specifically to the destruction of Jews and other Europeans by the Nazis and may also encompass the Nazi persecution of Jews that preceded the outbreak of the war. Word History: Totality of destruction has been central to the meaning of holocaust since it first appeared in Middle English in the 14th century, used in reference to the biblical sacrifice in which a male animal was wholly burnt on the altar in worship of God. Holocaust comes from Greek holokauston ("that which is completely burnt"), which was a translation of Hebrew ' lâ (literally "that which goes up," that is, in smoke). In this sense of "burnt sacrifice," holocaust is still used in some versions of the Bible. In the 17th century the meaning of holocaust broadened to "something totally consumed by fire," and the word eventually was applied to fires of extreme destructiveness. In the 20th century holocaust has taken on a variety of figurative meanings, summarizing the effects of war, rioting, storms, epidemic diseases, and even economic failures. Most of these usages arose after World War II, but it is unclear whether they permitted or resulted from the use of holocaust in reference to the mass murder of European Jews and others by the Nazis. This application of the word occurred as early as 1942, but the phrase the Holocaust did not become established until the late 1950s. Here it parallels and may have been influenced by another Hebrew word,  ô'â ("catastrophe," in English, Shoah). In the Bible ô'â has a range of meanings including "personal ruin or devastation" and "a wasteland or desert."  ô'â was first used to refer to the Nazi slaughter of Jews in 1939, but the phrase ha-ô'â ("the catastrophe") became established only after World War II. Holocaust has also been used to translate  urb n ("destruction"), another Hebrew word used to summarize the genocide of Jews by the Nazis. |
holocaust [ˈhɒləˌkɔːst]
n
1. great destruction or loss of life or the source of such destruction, esp fire
2. (Historical Terms) (usually capital) the. Also called: Churban, Shoah. the mass murder by the Nazis of the Jews of continental Europe between 1940 and 1945
3. (Christianity / Ecclesiastical Terms) a rare word for burnt offering
[from Late Latin holocaustum whole burnt offering, from Greek holokauston, from holo- + kaustos, from kaiein to burn]
holocaustal , holocaustic adj
holocaust
1. a burnt offering or sacrifice.
2. large-scale destruction by fire or other violent means.
See also: Killing
2. large-scale destruction by fire or other violent means.
ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
| Noun | 1. |  holocaust - an act of mass destruction and loss of life (especially in war or by fire); "a nuclear holocaust"destruction, devastation - the termination of something by causing so much damage to it that it cannot be repaired or no longer exists |
| 2. | Holocaust - the mass murder of Jews under the German Nazi regime from 1941 until 1945 |
holocaust
noun
1. devastation, destruction, carnage, genocide, inferno, annihilation, conflagration A nuclear holocaust seemed a very real possibility in the '50s.
2. genocide, massacre, carnage, mass murder, ethnic cleansing (euphemistic), annihilation, pogrom a fund for survivors of the holocaust and their families
Translations
Holocaust [ˈhɒləkɔːst] n (HISTORY) the Holocaust → l'Holocauste
holocaust [ˈhɒləkɔːst] n → holocauste m
a nuclear holocaust → un holocauste nucléaire
holocaust [ˈhɒləkɔːst] n → holocauste m
a nuclear holocaust → un holocauste nucléaire
holocaust
n
n holocaust [ˈholəkoːst]
great destruction, usually by fire, especially of people's lives. slagting مُحْرَقَه، كارثَه، إبادة كامِلَه унищожение vyhlazení holocaust; masseudryddelse die Massenvernichtung ολοκαύτωμα holocausto suur häving, holokaust همه سوزی tuho holocauste שוֹאָה महाविनाश opci pokolj, opce razaranje holokauszt malapetaka brennifórn; fjöldamorð, þjóðarmorð olocausto 大虐殺 대참사 masinis sunaikinimas/sudeginimas holokausts, masveida iznīcināšana kehancuran vernietiging katastrofebrann zagłada holocausto holocaust массовое уничтожение (людей) úplné zničenie (ohňom), holokaust veliko razdejanje; holokavst holokaust förödelse, katastrof, förhärjande brand ความหายนะ mahvolma, tamamen yok olma (常指大火造成的)大浩劫, 大屠殺 знищення; масове винищення آگ وغیرہ سے زبردست تباہی sự tàn sát 大毁灭,大屠杀
the Holocaust
the annihilation of six million Jews during the second world war. Joodse volksmoord الكارثَة اليهوديَّه холокост holocaust Holocaust der Holocaust το Ολοκαύτωμα Holocausto holokaust کشتار یهودیان توسط آلمان ها juutalaisten joukkomurha toisessa maailmansodassa l'Holocauste “הַשׁוֹאָה” दूसरे विश्वयुद्ध के दौरान यहूदियों का कत्ले आम Holokaust, genocid nad Židovima u Drugom svjetskom ratu a holokauszt pemusnahan, pembakaran Olocausto （ナチによる）ユダヤ人大虐殺 나치에 의한 유태인 대학살 holokaustas holokausts Holocaust holocaust holocaust, folkemord holokaust холокост holocaust pokol Židov Holokaust Förintelsen การทำลายจนสิ้น kıyım, ırk kıyımı 納粹對猶太人的大屠殺 Холокост دوسری عالمی جنگ کے دوران ساٹھ لاکھ یہودیوں کا قتل عام cuộc tàn sát người Do Thái 大屠杀（指纳粹对犹太人的种族灭绝）
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