castrate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to remove the testes of; emasculate; geld.
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to remove the ovaries of.
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Psychology. to render impotent, literally or metaphorically, by psychological means, especially by threatening a person's masculinity or femininity.
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to deprive of strength, power, or efficiency; weaken.
Without those ten new submarines, our navy will be castrated.
noun
verb
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to remove the testicles of; emasculate; geld
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to deprive of vigour, masculinity, etc
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to remove the ovaries of; spay
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to expurgate or censor (a book, play, etc)
Other Word Forms
- castration noun
- castrator noun
Etymology
Origin of castrate
First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin castrātus, past participle of castrāre “to geld,” equivalent to castr- “geld” + -ātus past participle suffix; -ate 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In 2013, he broke the ring finger on his glove hand while helping a neighbor castrate a calf.
From New York Times • Oct. 1, 2021
The anxiety of influence can trigger hysterical pastiche or castrate an author’s creativity.
From Washington Post • Dec. 28, 2020
His formative influences included his grandfather Lawrence Preston Gise, who is usually described in press accounts as Bezos would’ve known him – a semi-retired rancher showing his grandson how to castrate bulls.
From The Guardian • Jan. 31, 2019
“He said, ‘You know how to castrate a zebra?’ and I said, ‘Well, I never have but it looks like a striped horse to me.’
From Washington Times • Oct. 21, 2018
What would a society of eunuchs achieve?—But of course they are not eunuchs, in somer, but rather more comparable to preadolescents: not castrate, but latent.
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
