n.; pl. Carcasses [ Written also carcase. ] [ F. carcasse, fr. It. carcassa, fr. L. caro flesh + capsa chest, box, case. Cf. Carnal, Case a sheath. ] 1. A dead body, whether of man or beast; a corpse; now commonly the dead body of a beast. [ 1913 Webster ] He turned to see the carcass of the lion. Judges xiv. 8. [ 1913 Webster ] This kept thousands in the town whose carcasses went into the great pits by cartloads. De Foe. [ 1913 Webster ] 2. The living body; -- now commonly used in contempt or ridicule. “To pamper his own carcass.” South. [ 1913 Webster ] Lovely her face; was ne'er so fair a creature.
For earthly carcass had a heavenly feature. Oldham. [ 1913 Webster ] 3. The abandoned and decaying remains of some bulky and once comely thing, as a ship; the skeleton, or the uncovered or unfinished frame, of a thing. [ 1913 Webster ] A rotten carcass of a boat. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ] 4. (Mil.) A hollow case or shell, filled with combustibles, to be thrown from a mortar or howitzer, to set fire to buldings, ships, etc. [ 1913 Webster ] A discharge of carcasses and bombshells. W. Iving. [ 1913 Webster ] | 
