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mattanza

mass slaughter

noun maht-TAHN-tsah Rare
People & Society Crime

Origin: From mattare (to slaughter), related to Spanish matar.

Also means

tuna hunt

Usage Note

Mattanza originally and most precisely refers to the traditional Sicilian and Sardinian ritual tuna hunt, where large bluefin tuna are herded into nets and killed. Figuratively it is widely used in journalism to mean any large-scale killing or massacre: una mattanza di civili. The plural is mattanze.

Examples

"La mattanza del tonno è ormai quasi scomparsa."

Natural Translation

The traditional tuna hunt has now almost disappeared.

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