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Definition of macabre adjective from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

macabre

adjective
 
/məˈkɑːbrə/
 
/məˈkɑːbrə/
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  1. unpleasant and strange because connected with death and frightening things synonym ghoulish, grisly
    • a macabre tale/joke/ritual
    Oxford Collocations DictionaryMacabre is used with these nouns:
    • tale
    See full entry
    Word Originlate 19th cent.: from French macabre, from Danse Macabre ‘dance of death’, from Old French, perhaps from Macabé ‘a Maccabee’, with reference to a miracle play depicting the slaughter of the Maccabees.
See macabre in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
Check pronunciation: macabre

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