kill

The object is typically an abstract noun — relationship, plan, hope, mood, or spirit. This sense is not used for physically destroying objects (use 'break' or 'destroy' instead).

Informal and often carries a sense of speed or enthusiasm. Refers to finishing the contents of a container (bottle, glass, can) rather than just drinking liquid generally. Not used for sipping.

Always transitive; the object is the person or animal that becomes exhausted. Common in informal speech in phrases like 'This hike is killing me.' Very similar to sense 5 (cause pain), so look at context — if the result is wanting to rest rather than being in pain, this sense applies.

Almost always used in the continuous or progressive aspect: 'My back is killing me' or 'The pain was killing her.' Rarely used in simple past to describe pain ('The pain killed me' sounds like literal death). Distinguish from sense 4: this sense is about pain, not tiredness.

Always in the future tense ('will kill') or conditional ('would kill'). The speaker is exaggerating for effect — literal death is not intended. Common in informal, emotional speech. Rarely used in past tense.

Often appears with 'absolutely' for emphasis ('it absolutely killed me'). Past tense 'killed' and continuous 'killing' are the most frequent forms. The subject is always the funny thing or person, not the person laughing.

Always requires a reflexive pronoun (myself, yourself, herself, himself, ourselves, themselves). 'Kill yourself laughing' is the fixed formula; 'die laughing' is an alternative with the same meaning.

The object of this sense is always a period of time (time, an hour, the afternoon). You cannot say 'kill a book' or 'kill a game' to mean you are spending time on them. The activities used to kill time are usually simple and not very meaningful — this gives the phrase a slightly negative or bored tone compared to 'spend time'.

In computing, 'kill' often means to forcefully stop a program that is not responding. On a car or machine, 'kill' is more informal than 'turn off' or 'switch off', and it often suggests a quick or abrupt action.

This sense is used mainly in journalism and publishing. The decision to kill a story is often about avoiding legal trouble, political pressure, or embarrassment to the publisher. It is stronger than simply 'not publishing' — it implies an active decision to stop something that was already planned.

This sense is used in formal political and legal contexts. 'Kill' here is stronger than 'defeat' — it implies the proposal is finished and unlikely to be brought back. The subject is usually a person, group, or institution with the power to block legislation.

Exclusive to ice hockey. The noun form 'penalty kill' (countable) is equally common. The opposite situation — when the opposing team has a player advantage — is called a 'power play'.

Almost always called as a penalty by the referee. Can lead to a yellow card ('sin bin') if the offence is repeated or intentional. The term is specific to rugby union and rugby league.

Common in British football commentary and coaching. 'Trap' is used more often in American English. The phrase 'kill the ball' emphasizes bringing a fast-moving or high ball to a complete stop with precision.

In volleyball, 'kill' is an official statistic counting any attack that results in a point directly. In tennis and badminton, the term describes an aggressive shot that the opponent has no chance to return.

Ice hockey uses 'penalty kill' (often abbreviated 'PK') as a countable noun for a single successful penalty-killing situation, or as an uncountable noun for a team's overall performance in such situations. Frequently modified by numbers ('two-minute kill', 'five-on-three kill'). Not used outside of ice hockey.

Primarily used in military reporting, combat simulations, and video games. Often paired with a number ('three kills') or the adjective 'confirmed' (meaning the destruction has been verified). The singular form can refer to a single enemy unit destroyed.