décimer

to decimate, to devastate

verb deh-see-MEH Rare

Origin: Latin decimare (to take a tenth), from decem (ten)

Usage Note

Décimer originally described the Roman military punishment of killing every tenth soldier; in modern French it broadly means to destroy a large part of a group. The word is often used with populations, troops, or herds. The noun form is décimation.

Examples

"La maladie a décimé le troupeau."

Natural Translation

The disease decimated the herd.

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