decapitate

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decapitate

/dɪˈkap.ɪt.eɪt/ UK
/diˈkæp.ə.teɪt/ US
/diˈkæp.ɪ.teɪt/ US
/dɪ-/ US
/də-/ US

Where it comes from

From French décapiter, from Late Latin dēcapitāre, literally, “to de-head”.

verb decapitates · decapitating · decapitated

transitive To remove the head of. One machine in which Mr. Taylor takes special pride is a salmon canner, which engulfs a whole salmon, decapitates and decaudates it, skins it, blows out its viscera, cuts it into pieces, deposits them in the can, sterilizes them […]
figuratively, transitive To oust or destroy the leadership or ruling body of (a government etc.). The Russian goal at the start of the invasion had been to kill or capture Zelensky and decapitate his government.

Similar: behead, decollate · Opposite: recapitate

Thesaurus

verb

Similar: behead, decollate · Opposite: recapitate

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Cite this

MLA

"decapitate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/decapitate. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

decapitate. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/decapitate

Chicago

"decapitate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/decapitate.

BibTeX

@misc{decapitate_2026,
  title = {decapitate},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/decapitate},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}