executioner

/ˈɛksəˌkjuʃ(ə)nər/

/ɛksɪˈkjuʃɪnə/

Other forms: executioners

An executioner is a government official who kills people sentenced to death. Executioners kill legally.

There are many people who kill, such as murderers, soldiers, and hunters. Another is the executioner, whose job is to kill. If a king or legal system has decided that someone will be put to death, it's the executioner's job to kill them. Over time, executioners have used hanging, beheading, lethal injections, the electric chair, and many other ways of executing (killing). Without a doubt, being an executioner is one of the grimmest jobs in the world.

Definitions of executioner

1. noun

   an official who inflicts capital punishment in pursuit of a warrant
   synonyms: public executioner

   types:

   electrocutioner

   an executioner who uses electricity to kill the condemned person

   hangman

   an executioner who hangs the condemned person

   headman, headsman

   an executioner who beheads the condemned person

   type of:

   killer, slayer

   someone who causes the death of a person or animal