The act of killing a fetus or unborn child; a legal term used in some jurisdictions.
From Latin 'foetus' (offspring) + '-cide' (from 'caedere,' meaning 'to kill'). This compound directly translates to 'fetus-killing' and entered English legal vocabulary in the 19th century.
Different countries use this term very differently in law—some consider it a separate crime from murder, while others don't recognize it legally at all, showing how language reflects a society's values about life and law.
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