Definition of Decapitate

1. Verb. Cut the head of. "They want to decapitate the prisoners "; "The French King was beheaded during the Revolution"

Exact synonyms: Behead, Decollate
Generic synonyms: Kill
Specialized synonyms: Guillotine

Definition of Decapitate

1. v. t. To cut off the head of; to behead.

Definition of Decapitate

1. Verb. (transitive) To remove the head of. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Decapitate

1. [v -TATED, -TATING, -TATES]

Medical Definition of Decapitate

1. 1. To cut off the head; specifically, to remove the head of a foetus to facilitate delivery in cases of irremediable dystocia; to cut off the head of an animal in preparation for certain physiologic experiments; obsolete term. 2. Relating to an experimental animal with the head removed. Origin: L. De-, away, + caput, head (05 Mar 2000)

Lexicographical Neighbors of Decapitate

decapacitate
decapacitated
decapacitates
decapacitating
decapartite
decapentaplegic
decapeptide
decapeptides
decaphyllous
decapitalize
decapitalized
decapitalizes
decapitalizing
decapitate (current term)
decapitated
decapitates
decapitating
decapitation
decapitations
decapitator
decapitators
decaplet
decaplets
decapod
decapod crustacean
decapoda
decapodal
decapodan

Literary usage of Decapitate

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. Notes and Queries by Martim de Albuquerque (1861)
"decapitate man, and you straightway shall find That 'twas An [Ann] wrote a letter expressed in one word. 'Twas a cypher [0] she wrote, nought was read by ..."

2. The Century Dictionary: An Encyclopedic Lexicon of the English Language by William Dwight Whitney (1889)
"13, 1882. decapitate (dë-kap'itât), ct; prêt, and pp. decapitated, ppr. ... decapitate Laocoon, anil his knotted muscles will still express the same ..."

3. Lectures on obstetric operations including the treatment of haemorrhage and by Robert Barnes (1886)
"Again, he says: "It ought to be an established rule in practice to decapitate in arm-presentations not admitting of the safer performance of turning. ..."

4. Napoleon; a History of the Art of War by Theodore Ayrault Dodge (1904)
"... and, as it seems to me, murdered by the ril- lagers of Ramleh. Strive to capture the leaders and decapitate them." Of such orders the records are full, ..."

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