Draw And Quarter (Verb)
Meaning
Pull (a person) apart with four horses tied to his extremities, so as to execute him; "in the old days, people were drawn and quartered for certain crimes".
Classification
Verbs of political and social activities and events.
Examples
- The medieval method of execution intended to inflict utmost suffering involved drawing and quartering the victim.
- The infamous traitor was drawn and quartered in the town square, a gruesome punishment meted out to deter others.
- Drawing and quartering an enemy leader was thought to demonstrate the ruler's total power over the vanquished.
- Treason during wartime was punishable by being drawn and quartered in some centuries past.
- The spectacle of drawing and quartering a convicted felon served as public entertainment in an era devoid of social welfare.