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Comment by avn2109 | Hacker News Reader

"To electrocute" means "to kill by electric shock [0]," therefore it's in principle impossible to "repeatedly electrocute" anyone.

[0] https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/electrocute

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Yes, this annoyed me slightly while reading the article. But, it's typical in common speech to use "electrocute" to mean "to deliver a significant electrical shock". Since there's no concise way to express that concept, and it is probably a more common occurrence than true electrocution, it makes sense that people have adapted the word this way. I expect this is one of those cases of language evolving where this meaning will eventually make it into dictionaries. At least it's more functional than using "literally" in the place of "figuratively".

I have repeatedly tried to push "electrotetanize" for non-lethal, non-injurious electric shocks that are nonetheless strong enough to produce muscle contraction or temporary paralysis. Sadly, it has not been considered cromulent enough to propagandate.

So my continuum of increasing exposure to electricity would be charge < shock < zap < prod < jolt < galvanize < electrify < electrotetanize < electrocauterize < electrocute.

Keraunos is the Greek root for lightning, and fulgur/fulmen is the Latin root, in case you might want to coin your own term.

Fulgurate is a synonym for electrocauterize.

Why not just "shock"? Like the famous Peter Gabriel song "Shock the Monkey".

Because you can give someone a shock by dragging your feet across a carpet and touching exposed skin.

When you start piling on the syllables, you know there's some serious current flowing.

"heavy shock" is much easier than "electrotetanize"

I agree with you, but was disturbed to discover a couple of weeks ago that Google does not. A search for "define electrocute" returns a definition that includes injury, not necessarily death.

  > injure or kill someone by electric shock.

I was not aware of this! I thought 'electrocute' applied to any situation where electricity (perhaps harmfully) passed into a body.

Thank you for correcting a long outstanding misconception of mine.

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