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decimate
[ des-uh-meyt ]
verb (used with object)
- to kill or destroy a great number or proportion of:
The population was decimated by a plague.
- to greatly reduce in number or amount:
From 1975-1981, our country was not driving the space exploration agenda, and our aerospace workforce was decimated.
- to cause to suffer great loss or harm:
The constant eruptions that spewed forth decimated the forest and turned it to ash.
- to select by lot and kill every tenth person of.
- Obsolete. to take a tenth of or from.
decimate
/ ˈɛɪˌɪ /
verb
- to destroy or kill a large proportion of
a plague decimated the population
- (esp in the ancient Roman army) to kill every tenth man of (a mutinous section)
Usage
Derived Forms
- ˌˈپDz, noun
- ˈˌٴǰ, noun
Other Word Forms
- ···پDz [des-, uh, -, mey, -sh, uh, n], noun
- ···ٴǰ noun
Word History and Origins
Word History and Origins
Origin of decimate1
Example Sentences
Tarheeb Still and Cam Hart proved themselves to be worthy starters when injuries decimated the secondary.
It's no secret Tottenham's team has been decimated by injuries this season.
And if that weren’t bad enough, America’s manufacturing base and national security-critical supply chain infrastructure have been decimated — by China.
"They've had two or three runs at this now, and I think they will be coming up with a plan in terms of taking that pressure and decimating it and putting it aside."
Participants expressed concerns that raids targeting farmworkers will drive up grocery prices and that wide-scale deportations will decimate small businesses and make it more expensive to build houses.
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