Euthanasiaistheactorpracticeofkillingorpermittingthedeathofhopelesslysickorinjuredindividuals(suchaspersonsordomesticanimals)inarelativelypainlesswayforreasonsofmercy.ThewordcomesfromtheGreekeuthanatos,whichmeans'easydeath.'InEnglish,euthanasiahasbeenusedinexactlythissensesincetheearlyseventeenthcentury,whenFrancisBacondescribedthephenomenonas'afterthefashionandsemblanceofakindly&pleasantsleepe.'Nowadays,thewordusuallyreferstothemeansofattainingsuchadeath."