Decimate: meaning, pronunciation and examples
Decimate verb. To kill or destroy a large part of something.
How to say it
DESS-ih-mayt/ˈdɛsɪmeɪt/
3 syllables, stressed on the first (DESS). Forms: decimated.
Decimate in a sentence
Disease decimated the island's frog population in a decade.
Cheap flights decimated the old ferry trade.
Similar and opposite
Similar:
- devastate
- ravage
- wipe out
- destroy
Careful
Purists say it should mean to kill one in ten, as in Rome, but 'destroy a large part of' has long been standard. The real slip is using it for total destruction.
Where decimate comes from
From Latin decimare, to kill one soldier in ten as a punishment for a mutinous legion.
Test yourself
Which word fills the gap?
Cheap flights _____ the old ferry trade.
- decimate
- refute
- electrocute
Show the answer
decimate: Cheap flights decimated the old ferry trade.