slasher

The word "slasher" carries a few related meanings, all built around the idea of cutting. In its older and more literal sense, a slasher is a person who attacks by slashing with a knife, sword, or other blade. That meaning still appears, especially in crime reports or dramatic writing, but it is not the meaning most people think of first today.

In modern English, "slasher" is strongly tied to horror. It can refer to the killer in a horror story, but very often it refers to the story or movie itself: a slasher film, or simply a slasher. This kind of horror usually follows a murderer who hunts a group of victims, often with a sharp weapon. The genre became especially famous from the late 1970s onward through films like Halloween, Friday the 13th, and A Nightmare on Elm Street. Common features include suspense, violent killings, and a small set of familiar patterns, such as the last survivor facing the killer in the end.

The word also appears in business language in a more figurative way. A "price slasher" is a person or company that cuts prices sharply to attract buyers. In every sense, the word suggests something forceful, sharp, and cutting, whether the subject is a criminal, a horror movie, or an aggressive seller.