verb
décimer
decimate
Definition & meaning
Décimer has two distinct meanings in French:
- Historical/Military meaning: To kill one in every ten people in a group. This refers to an ancient Roman military punishment (decimatio) used for mutinous or cowardly units.
- General/Modern meaning: To destroy a large number of individuals, to drastically reduce the population of a species, or to cause widespread devastation to a group (whether human, animal, or inanimate).
Grammar & Word origin
- Part of speech: Transitive verb.
- Word origin: Derived from the Latin decimare, which comes from decimus (tenth). The structure is based on the root dix , reflecting the division by ten.
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonyms:
- Exterminer (to exterminate)
- Anéantir (to annihilate)
- Massacrer (to massacre)
- Ravager (to ravage)
- Éradiquer (to eradicate)
Antonyms:
Make “décimer” part of your vocabulary.
Build your French vocabulary with flashcards, audio and spaced repetition.
Examples
La maladie décime les fleurs du jardin.verb
The disease is decimating the flowers in the garden.
Keep exploring French
Learn words from the content you love.
Add words from websites, books and videos, then remember them with spaced repetition (SRS).
Scan for iPhone & iPad