of, pertaining to, dealing with, or representing death, especially its grimmer or uglier aspect.
of or suggestive of the allegorical dance of death.
Origin of macabre
1400–50; <French; compare late Middle English Macabrees daunce<Middle French danse (de) Macabré, of uncertain origin; perhaps to be identified with Medieval Latin chorēa Machabaeōrum a representation of the deaths of Judas Maccabaeus and his brothers, but evidence is lacking; the French pronunciation with mute e is a misreading of the Middle French forms
The runoff has turned into a macabre political sideshow filled with grotesque attacks and ugly accusations.
Mississippi GOP Plays Games With Black Votes|Ben Jacobs|June 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In more ways than one, the tableaux have macabre backstories.
Dead and Beautiful: The Art of Taxidermy|William O’Connor|April 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And if these meetings had their macabre side, I hope it was hidden at least from my guests.
Sonia Between two Worlds|Stephen McKenna
In Germany especially have these macabre imaginings flourished.
Raemaekers' Cartoons|Louis Raemaekers
You will observe what a relish I have for my own macabre, and how keenly I appreciate the present situation.
The Journal of a Disappointed Man|Wilhelm Nero Pilate Barbellion
There was a touch of the macabre in it that rendered his flesh cold and weak.
The Observers|G. L. Vandenburg
It was the last of his additions to Death's Jest Book, and the most macabre of all.
Books and Characters|Lytton Strachey
British Dictionary definitions for macabre
macabre
/ (məˈkɑːbə, -brə) /
adjective
gruesome; ghastly; grim
resembling or associated with the danse macabre
Derived forms of macabre
macabrely, adverb
Word Origin for macabre
C15: from Old French danse macabre dance of death, probably from macabé relating to the Maccabees, who were associated with death because of the doctrines and prayers for the dead in II Macc. (12:43–46)