палач

Agent noun of па́ля (pálja, “to ignite fire”) +‎ -ач (-ač).

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пала́ч • (paláč) m (rare)

1. fireraiser

• паля́к (palják, “easily agitated person”) (colloquail)
• пали́тел (palítel), подпалва́ч (podpalváč, “arsonist”) (agent nouns)
• пали́ло (palílo), пали́ч (palíč, “incendiary”) (instrumental nouns)
• пали́во (palívo, “fuel, material for ignition”)

• Duridanov, I. V., Racheva, M., Todorov, T. A., editors (1996), “палач¹”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volume 5 (падѐж – пỳска), Sofia: Prof. Marin Drinov Pubg. House, →ISBN, page 23

Borrowed from Russian пала́ч (paláč), of unclear origin.

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пала́ч • (paláč) m (standard)

1. executioner

   Synonym: екзеку́тор (ekzekútor)

2. (figurative) tormentor, torturer

   Synonyms: изтеза́тел (iztezátel), мъчи́тел (mǎčítel)

• па́лица (pálica), па́лка (pálka, “staff, cudgel”) (possibly)

• “палач”, in Речник на българския език [Dictionary of the Bulgarian Language] (in Bulgarian), Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 2014
• “палач”, in Речник на българския език [Dictionary of the Bulgarian Language] (in Bulgarian), Chitanka, 2010
• Duridanov, I. V., Racheva, M., Todorov, T. A., editors (1996), “палач²”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volume 5 (падѐж – пỳска), Sofia: Prof. Marin Drinov Pubg. House, →ISBN, page 23

• плача (plača), чапла (čapla)

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

• IPA^(key):
• Hyphenation: па‧лач

палач • (palač) m (plural палачи, relational adjective палачен)

1. (literary, rare) executioner, hangman

   Synonyms: џелат (dželat), главосек (glavosek), главорез (glavorez), погубник (pogubnik), бесач (besač)

• “палач” in Дигитален речник на македонскиот јазик (Digitalen rečnik na makedonskiot jazik) − drmj.eu

• лапач (lapač)

Russian Wikipedia has an article on:

палач

Wikipedia ^ru

• пала́чъ (paláč) — Pre-reform orthography (1918)

Often ascribed to Turkish pala (“sword”) +‎ -ач (-ač) or *palacı (“sword bearer”).

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• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -at͡ɕ

пала́ч • (paláč) m anim (genitive палача́, nominative plural палачи́, genitive plural палаче́й)

1. (also figuratively) executioner, hangman