Definition, synonyms and related words
simple past tense and past participle of kill
"The storm killed all the power lines across the neighborhood, leaving everyone in the dark for hours."
In plain English: To kill means to cause someone or something to stop living permanently.
"The car accident killed three people instantly."
Usage: Use "killed" to describe the act of causing someone or something to die in the past, such as saying he killed the bird yesterday. It also functions as the past participle for perfect tenses, like stating the accident had killed three people.
deoxidized
"The metallurgist killed the molten steel by introducing oxygen-absorbing alloys to remove impurities before casting."
In plain English: Killed means something is completely dead and not alive anymore.
"The tired and killed-off workers finally went home for a long rest."
Usage: The term "killed" is not used as an adjective in standard modern English to mean "deoxidized." While metallurgical texts may use this specific technical sense to describe steel that has been treated with oxygen-removing agents, it is far more common and correct to use the adjective "dead" for general descriptions of lifelessness.
Derived from Old English cyllan (to kill), this past tense form originally meant to put an end to life through violence or injury. It entered Middle English with the same lethal meaning before evolving into modern usage that includes metaphorical senses like disabling software.