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commit suicide

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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Pronunciation

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  • Audio (US):(file)

Verb

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commit suicide (third-person singular simple present commits suicide, present participle committing suicide, simple past and past participle committed suicide)

  1. To kill oneself; to take one's own life. (This entry is a translation hub.)
    Synonyms: suicide, kill oneself; see also Thesaurus:commit suicide

Usage notes

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  • The conventional verb construction is to commit suicide. Mental health organizations discourage this usage as outdated and stigmatizing; suggested alternatives include die by suicide, suicide (verb), or rephrasings without the word suicide, such as took one's own life or killed oneself.[1][2][3] Euphemisms, such as take the easy way out,[4] are discouraged.[5]

Translations

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References

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  1. ^ Grey, Sarah (2018 February 22) “Conscious Language in The American Heritage Dictionary”, in Conscious Style Guide[1], retrieved 30 June 2021
  2. ^ “Commit suicide”, in Cambridge Dictionary[2], 2021 June 30 (last accessed)
  3. ^ Suicide”, in Dictionary.com, 2021 June 30 (last accessed)
  4. ^ Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary. S.v. "take the easy way out." Retrieved April 11 2025 from https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/take+the+easy+way+out
  5. ^ Samaritans Do's and Don'ts 2024 "Talk directly about suicide. AVOID euphemisms."