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Today's Word "assassin"

person who commits murder by surprise attack on

Published in Vocabulary

assassin \eh-SAE-sin\ (noun) - A person who commits murder by surprise attack, especially one who murders a politically important figure either for hire or from fanatical motives.

"Assassination has never changed the history of the world." - British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli (1874-1880)

 

French and Italian from Medieval Latin "assassinus" from Arabic "hashshash-in," plural of hashish-ash "hashish user" from hashish "hashish." During the Crusades, fanatics sent out to kill Christian leaders were promised paradise in return for dying the death of a martyr. To enhance the appeal of this arrangement, they were treated to the earthly pleasures of hashish before setting out.


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