Definition of decimate in English:

decimate

verb ˈdɛsɪmeɪtˈdɛsəˌmeɪt

[with object]

1Kill, destroy, or remove a large proportion of.
大批杀死；大量毁灭；大批清除
the inhabitants of the country had been decimated
该国居民被大批杀害。
Example sentencesExamples
- Fields are still small, there are no huge modern sheds and the pastures are rich in species that would otherwise have been decimated by modern farming methods.
- Encroachment by farmers and livestock was already decimating the park's wildlife.
- A lot of the bird species here, particularly the migratory waders, have been decimated.
- Trees are hard to kill, but their populations can be decimated by the same types of parasitic or bacterial plagues that can destroy human populations.
- At the same time some of the native species that were decimated by the Nile Perch, or were even thought extinct, were coming back.
- Thousands of bee swarms in the central Eastern Cape have been decimated by a deadly blood-sucking Asian mite which destroys the male drone bees and damages female worker bees.
- Populations of these invertebrates have been decimated or even eradicated in areas where wasps are common.
- The big fleet in Thailand was decimated in a fire at the Royal Varuna Club several years ago, though there are still a few ‘vintage’ boats at Varuna.
- Yet both dam projects would decimate the very scrubland the lynx depends on.
- Of course, if a walker happened to stumble on the nest of one of the few remaining pairs of a species which has been decimated by farming practices, damage could result.
- A huge Scots army was decimated, thousands killed, enslaved, or exiled.
- The plague decimated the working population of Europe, and this left large tracts of land vacant.
- The fishing fleet may have been decimated, and the pits and shipyards may have been replaced by air-conditioned call centres, but Britain's industrial heritage lives on in song.
- Scotland's fishing fleet has been decimated and the rest of us were as powerless as the Scottish Minister for Fishing.
- Native clam populations in the Great Lakes have been decimated, and other species that compete for food with the mussels are in sharp decline.
- The idea grew out of an effort to save highly endangered Micronesian kingfishers in Guam, where many bird species had been decimated by a brown snake invasion.
- Extensive wetlands in Sonora have been decimated by irrigated agriculture and urbanization.
- Those groups are the remnants of populations that were decimated by whalers and other seafarers who killed the creatures for food.
- A University of Sydney researcher is claiming up to a third of our snake species could be decimated.
- Prior to 1990 the species had been decimated by a combination of habitat loss and capture of birds for the pet trade, and was considered extinct in the wild.
Synonyms
get rid of, eliminate, do away with, remove, suppress
1. 1.1 Drastically reduce the strength or effectiveness of (something)
  大大削弱，使…严重失效
  public transport has been decimated
  公共交通元气大伤。
  Example sentencesExamples
  I didn't see these self same people out on the pickets when the mining industry was decimated, neither were they there when the steel industry collapsed.
  In reality, the effects of privatisation and subcontracting in community care has decimated the true potential of people that need support in the community.
  How can any honest American still follow this clown, he has decimated the economy and strength of our country, every American should be outraged
  Furthermore, anyone leaving the society would also get back only the minimum they were due, which means they would lose discretionary final bonuses, decimating the value of many investors' pension pots.
  The fear of the virus has decimated the tourist trade to South East Asia, with Singapore bearing the brunt of the cancellations.
  In the early 1890s, a series of brutal winters decimated the cattle industry.
  Supermarkets all over the country have been lowering wages and decimating workers' health plans.
  At the very least it could allow all 12 voluntary projects that have been decimated by these cuts more time to try and find alternative sources of funding or make appropriate plans.
  Only last month the government announced the biggest spending cuts in more than a decade that will decimate the public services on which thousands rely.
  Traders claiming their businesses have been decimated by a controversial bus lane were due to hold an emergency public meeting with Transport for London last night.
  Both agriculture and the province's small manufacturing industries were decimated during the civil war.
  Fiscal infrastructure decimated by the effects of war.
  Donegal's once vibrant textile industry has been decimated in the past decade with the closure of companies like Jockey, Donegal Shirts and Fingal Manufacturing.
  Film producers have warned that the Government risks decimating the home-grown industry if it scraps tax breaks for movie-makers.
2historical Kill one in every ten of (a group of people, originally a mutinous Roman legion) as a punishment for the whole group.
〈史〉抽杀…十分之一的人（作为对整体的惩罚）
the man who is to determine whether it be necessary to decimate a large body of mutineers
Example sentencesExamples
- Augustus firmly imposed his discipline on his men: he once dismissed an entire legion in disgrace, and didn't hesitate to decimate troops who would give in to the enemy.

Usage

Historically, the meaning of the word decimate is ‘kill one in every ten of (a group of people)’. This sense has been more or less totally superseded by the later, more general sense ‘kill, destroy, or remove a large proportion of’, as in the virus has decimated the population. Some traditionalists argue that this is incorrect, but it is clear that it is now part of standard English

Derivatives

decimator

noun

Origin

Late Middle English: from Latin decimat- 'taken as a tenth', from the verb decimare, from decimus 'tenth'. In Middle English the term decimation denoted the levying of a tithe, and later the tax imposed by Cromwell on the Royalists (1655).

When Roman legions mutinied, they would be decimated—one in every ten men would be selected by lot and executed. In its first recorded use in English, in the late 16th century, decimate refers to this practice, but by the mid 17th century people were using it of other acts of killing, destroying, or removing one in ten. They then lost sight of the military context, and soon any severe loss or destruction could be described as decimation. See also decade

Definition of decimate in US English:

decimate

verbˈdesəˌmātˈdɛsəˌmeɪt

[with object]

1Kill, destroy, or remove a large percentage or part of.
大批杀死；大量毁灭；大批清除
the project would decimate the fragile wetland wilderness
the American chestnut, a species decimated by blight
Example sentencesExamples
- Thousands of bee swarms in the central Eastern Cape have been decimated by a deadly blood-sucking Asian mite which destroys the male drone bees and damages female worker bees.
- The plague decimated the working population of Europe, and this left large tracts of land vacant.
- A lot of the bird species here, particularly the migratory waders, have been decimated.
- Fields are still small, there are no huge modern sheds and the pastures are rich in species that would otherwise have been decimated by modern farming methods.
- Extensive wetlands in Sonora have been decimated by irrigated agriculture and urbanization.
- Trees are hard to kill, but their populations can be decimated by the same types of parasitic or bacterial plagues that can destroy human populations.
- The idea grew out of an effort to save highly endangered Micronesian kingfishers in Guam, where many bird species had been decimated by a brown snake invasion.
- The fishing fleet may have been decimated, and the pits and shipyards may have been replaced by air-conditioned call centres, but Britain's industrial heritage lives on in song.
- Of course, if a walker happened to stumble on the nest of one of the few remaining pairs of a species which has been decimated by farming practices, damage could result.
- Those groups are the remnants of populations that were decimated by whalers and other seafarers who killed the creatures for food.
- Prior to 1990 the species had been decimated by a combination of habitat loss and capture of birds for the pet trade, and was considered extinct in the wild.
- Native clam populations in the Great Lakes have been decimated, and other species that compete for food with the mussels are in sharp decline.
- At the same time some of the native species that were decimated by the Nile Perch, or were even thought extinct, were coming back.
- Encroachment by farmers and livestock was already decimating the park's wildlife.
- Yet both dam projects would decimate the very scrubland the lynx depends on.
- The big fleet in Thailand was decimated in a fire at the Royal Varuna Club several years ago, though there are still a few ‘vintage’ boats at Varuna.
- A University of Sydney researcher is claiming up to a third of our snake species could be decimated.
- Populations of these invertebrates have been decimated or even eradicated in areas where wasps are common.
- A huge Scots army was decimated, thousands killed, enslaved, or exiled.
- Scotland's fishing fleet has been decimated and the rest of us were as powerless as the Scottish Minister for Fishing.
Synonyms
get rid of, eliminate, do away with, remove, suppress
1. 1.1 Drastically reduce the strength or effectiveness of (something)
  大大削弱，使…严重失效
  plant viruses that can decimate yields
  Example sentencesExamples
  Film producers have warned that the Government risks decimating the home-grown industry if it scraps tax breaks for movie-makers.
  In reality, the effects of privatisation and subcontracting in community care has decimated the true potential of people that need support in the community.
  Supermarkets all over the country have been lowering wages and decimating workers' health plans.
  Only last month the government announced the biggest spending cuts in more than a decade that will decimate the public services on which thousands rely.
  Furthermore, anyone leaving the society would also get back only the minimum they were due, which means they would lose discretionary final bonuses, decimating the value of many investors' pension pots.
  At the very least it could allow all 12 voluntary projects that have been decimated by these cuts more time to try and find alternative sources of funding or make appropriate plans.
  Both agriculture and the province's small manufacturing industries were decimated during the civil war.
  Donegal's once vibrant textile industry has been decimated in the past decade with the closure of companies like Jockey, Donegal Shirts and Fingal Manufacturing.
  I didn't see these self same people out on the pickets when the mining industry was decimated, neither were they there when the steel industry collapsed.
  How can any honest American still follow this clown, he has decimated the economy and strength of our country, every American should be outraged
  In the early 1890s, a series of brutal winters decimated the cattle industry.
  The fear of the virus has decimated the tourist trade to South East Asia, with Singapore bearing the brunt of the cancellations.
  Traders claiming their businesses have been decimated by a controversial bus lane were due to hold an emergency public meeting with Transport for London last night.
  Fiscal infrastructure decimated by the effects of war.
2historical Kill one in every ten of (a group of soldiers or others) as a punishment for the whole group.
〈史〉抽杀…十分之一的人（作为对整体的惩罚）
Example sentencesExamples
- Augustus firmly imposed his discipline on his men: he once dismissed an entire legion in disgrace, and didn't hesitate to decimate troops who would give in to the enemy.

Usage

Historically, the meaning of the word decimate is ‘kill one in every ten of (a group of people).’ This sense has been superseded by the later, more general sense ‘kill or destroy a large percentage or part of,’ as in the virus has decimated the population. Some traditionalists argue that this and other later senses are incorrect, but it is clear that these extended senses are now part of standard English. It is sometimes also argued that decimate should refer to people and not to things or animals such as weeds or insects. It is generally agreed that decimate should not be used to mean ‘defeat utterly.’

Origin

Late Middle English: from Latin decimat- ‘taken as a tenth’, from the verb decimare, from decimus ‘tenth’. In Middle English the term decimation denoted the levying of a tithe, and later the tax imposed by Cromwell on the Royalists (1655).

词汇	decimate
释义	Definition of decimate in English: decimate verb ˈdɛsɪmeɪtˈdɛsəˌmeɪt [with object] 1Kill, destroy, or remove a large proportion of. 大批杀死；大量毁灭；大批清除 the inhabitants of the country had been decimated 该国居民被大批杀害。 Example sentencesExamples Fields are still small, there are no huge modern sheds and the pastures are rich in species that would otherwise have been decimated by modern farming methods. Encroachment by farmers and livestock was already decimating the park's wildlife. A lot of the bird species here, particularly the migratory waders, have been decimated. Trees are hard to kill, but their populations can be decimated by the same types of parasitic or bacterial plagues that can destroy human populations. At the same time some of the native species that were decimated by the Nile Perch, or were even thought extinct, were coming back. Thousands of bee swarms in the central Eastern Cape have been decimated by a deadly blood-sucking Asian mite which destroys the male drone bees and damages female worker bees. Populations of these invertebrates have been decimated or even eradicated in areas where wasps are common. The big fleet in Thailand was decimated in a fire at the Royal Varuna Club several years ago, though there are still a few ‘vintage’ boats at Varuna. Yet both dam projects would decimate the very scrubland the lynx depends on. Of course, if a walker happened to stumble on the nest of one of the few remaining pairs of a species which has been decimated by farming practices, damage could result. A huge Scots army was decimated, thousands killed, enslaved, or exiled. The plague decimated the working population of Europe, and this left large tracts of land vacant. The fishing fleet may have been decimated, and the pits and shipyards may have been replaced by air-conditioned call centres, but Britain's industrial heritage lives on in song. Scotland's fishing fleet has been decimated and the rest of us were as powerless as the Scottish Minister for Fishing. Native clam populations in the Great Lakes have been decimated, and other species that compete for food with the mussels are in sharp decline. The idea grew out of an effort to save highly endangered Micronesian kingfishers in Guam, where many bird species had been decimated by a brown snake invasion. Extensive wetlands in Sonora have been decimated by irrigated agriculture and urbanization. Those groups are the remnants of populations that were decimated by whalers and other seafarers who killed the creatures for food. A University of Sydney researcher is claiming up to a third of our snake species could be decimated. Prior to 1990 the species had been decimated by a combination of habitat loss and capture of birds for the pet trade, and was considered extinct in the wild. Synonyms get rid of, eliminate, do away with, remove, suppress 1.1 Drastically reduce the strength or effectiveness of (something) 大大削弱，使…严重失效 public transport has been decimated 公共交通元气大伤。 Example sentencesExamples I didn't see these self same people out on the pickets when the mining industry was decimated, neither were they there when the steel industry collapsed. In reality, the effects of privatisation and subcontracting in community care has decimated the true potential of people that need support in the community. How can any honest American still follow this clown, he has decimated the economy and strength of our country, every American should be outraged Furthermore, anyone leaving the society would also get back only the minimum they were due, which means they would lose discretionary final bonuses, decimating the value of many investors' pension pots. The fear of the virus has decimated the tourist trade to South East Asia, with Singapore bearing the brunt of the cancellations. In the early 1890s, a series of brutal winters decimated the cattle industry. Supermarkets all over the country have been lowering wages and decimating workers' health plans. At the very least it could allow all 12 voluntary projects that have been decimated by these cuts more time to try and find alternative sources of funding or make appropriate plans. Only last month the government announced the biggest spending cuts in more than a decade that will decimate the public services on which thousands rely. Traders claiming their businesses have been decimated by a controversial bus lane were due to hold an emergency public meeting with Transport for London last night. Both agriculture and the province's small manufacturing industries were decimated during the civil war. Fiscal infrastructure decimated by the effects of war. Donegal's once vibrant textile industry has been decimated in the past decade with the closure of companies like Jockey, Donegal Shirts and Fingal Manufacturing. Film producers have warned that the Government risks decimating the home-grown industry if it scraps tax breaks for movie-makers. 2historical Kill one in every ten of (a group of people, originally a mutinous Roman legion) as a punishment for the whole group. 〈史〉抽杀…十分之一的人（作为对整体的惩罚） the man who is to determine whether it be necessary to decimate a large body of mutineers Example sentencesExamples Augustus firmly imposed his discipline on his men: he once dismissed an entire legion in disgrace, and didn't hesitate to decimate troops who would give in to the enemy. Usage Historically, the meaning of the word decimate is ‘kill one in every ten of (a group of people)’. This sense has been more or less totally superseded by the later, more general sense ‘kill, destroy, or remove a large proportion of’, as in the virus has decimated the population. Some traditionalists argue that this is incorrect, but it is clear that it is now part of standard English Derivatives decimator noun Origin Late Middle English: from Latin decimat- 'taken as a tenth', from the verb decimare, from decimus 'tenth'. In Middle English the term decimation denoted the levying of a tithe, and later the tax imposed by Cromwell on the Royalists (1655). When Roman legions mutinied, they would be decimated—one in every ten men would be selected by lot and executed. In its first recorded use in English, in the late 16th century, decimate refers to this practice, but by the mid 17th century people were using it of other acts of killing, destroying, or removing one in ten. They then lost sight of the military context, and soon any severe loss or destruction could be described as decimation. See also decade Definition of decimate in US English: decimate verbˈdesəˌmātˈdɛsəˌmeɪt [with object] 1Kill, destroy, or remove a large percentage or part of. 大批杀死；大量毁灭；大批清除 the project would decimate the fragile wetland wilderness the American chestnut, a species decimated by blight Example sentencesExamples Thousands of bee swarms in the central Eastern Cape have been decimated by a deadly blood-sucking Asian mite which destroys the male drone bees and damages female worker bees. The plague decimated the working population of Europe, and this left large tracts of land vacant. A lot of the bird species here, particularly the migratory waders, have been decimated. Fields are still small, there are no huge modern sheds and the pastures are rich in species that would otherwise have been decimated by modern farming methods. Extensive wetlands in Sonora have been decimated by irrigated agriculture and urbanization. Trees are hard to kill, but their populations can be decimated by the same types of parasitic or bacterial plagues that can destroy human populations. The idea grew out of an effort to save highly endangered Micronesian kingfishers in Guam, where many bird species had been decimated by a brown snake invasion. The fishing fleet may have been decimated, and the pits and shipyards may have been replaced by air-conditioned call centres, but Britain's industrial heritage lives on in song. Of course, if a walker happened to stumble on the nest of one of the few remaining pairs of a species which has been decimated by farming practices, damage could result. Those groups are the remnants of populations that were decimated by whalers and other seafarers who killed the creatures for food. Prior to 1990 the species had been decimated by a combination of habitat loss and capture of birds for the pet trade, and was considered extinct in the wild. Native clam populations in the Great Lakes have been decimated, and other species that compete for food with the mussels are in sharp decline. At the same time some of the native species that were decimated by the Nile Perch, or were even thought extinct, were coming back. Encroachment by farmers and livestock was already decimating the park's wildlife. Yet both dam projects would decimate the very scrubland the lynx depends on. The big fleet in Thailand was decimated in a fire at the Royal Varuna Club several years ago, though there are still a few ‘vintage’ boats at Varuna. A University of Sydney researcher is claiming up to a third of our snake species could be decimated. Populations of these invertebrates have been decimated or even eradicated in areas where wasps are common. A huge Scots army was decimated, thousands killed, enslaved, or exiled. Scotland's fishing fleet has been decimated and the rest of us were as powerless as the Scottish Minister for Fishing. Synonyms get rid of, eliminate, do away with, remove, suppress 1.1 Drastically reduce the strength or effectiveness of (something) 大大削弱，使…严重失效 plant viruses that can decimate yields Example sentencesExamples Film producers have warned that the Government risks decimating the home-grown industry if it scraps tax breaks for movie-makers. In reality, the effects of privatisation and subcontracting in community care has decimated the true potential of people that need support in the community. Supermarkets all over the country have been lowering wages and decimating workers' health plans. Only last month the government announced the biggest spending cuts in more than a decade that will decimate the public services on which thousands rely. Furthermore, anyone leaving the society would also get back only the minimum they were due, which means they would lose discretionary final bonuses, decimating the value of many investors' pension pots. At the very least it could allow all 12 voluntary projects that have been decimated by these cuts more time to try and find alternative sources of funding or make appropriate plans. Both agriculture and the province's small manufacturing industries were decimated during the civil war. Donegal's once vibrant textile industry has been decimated in the past decade with the closure of companies like Jockey, Donegal Shirts and Fingal Manufacturing. I didn't see these self same people out on the pickets when the mining industry was decimated, neither were they there when the steel industry collapsed. How can any honest American still follow this clown, he has decimated the economy and strength of our country, every American should be outraged In the early 1890s, a series of brutal winters decimated the cattle industry. The fear of the virus has decimated the tourist trade to South East Asia, with Singapore bearing the brunt of the cancellations. Traders claiming their businesses have been decimated by a controversial bus lane were due to hold an emergency public meeting with Transport for London last night. Fiscal infrastructure decimated by the effects of war. 2historical Kill one in every ten of (a group of soldiers or others) as a punishment for the whole group. 〈史〉抽杀…十分之一的人（作为对整体的惩罚） Example sentencesExamples Augustus firmly imposed his discipline on his men: he once dismissed an entire legion in disgrace, and didn't hesitate to decimate troops who would give in to the enemy. Usage Historically, the meaning of the word decimate is ‘kill one in every ten of (a group of people).’ This sense has been superseded by the later, more general sense ‘kill or destroy a large percentage or part of,’ as in the virus has decimated the population. Some traditionalists argue that this and other later senses are incorrect, but it is clear that these extended senses are now part of standard English. It is sometimes also argued that decimate should refer to people and not to things or animals such as weeds or insects. It is generally agreed that decimate should not be used to mean ‘defeat utterly.’ Origin Late Middle English: from Latin decimat- ‘taken as a tenth’, from the verb decimare, from decimus ‘tenth’. In Middle English the term decimation denoted the levying of a tithe, and later the tax imposed by Cromwell on the Royalists (1655).
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