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amputate

[ am-pyoo-teyt ]
/ ˈæm pyʊˌteɪt /
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See synonyms for: amputate / amputated on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), am·pu·tat·ed, am·pu·tat·ing.
to cut off (all or part of a limb or digit of the body), as by surgery.
to prune, lop off, or remove: Because of space limitations the editor amputated the last two paragraphs of the news report.
Obsolete. to prune, as branches of trees.
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Origin of amputate

1630–40; <Latin amputātus pruned, trimmed (past participle of amputāre), equivalent to am(bi) around (cf. ambi-) + put- trim + -ātus-ate1

OTHER WORDS FROM amputate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use amputate in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for amputate

amputate
/ (ˈæmpjʊˌteɪt) /

verb
surgery to remove (all or part of a limb, esp an arm or leg)

Derived forms of amputate

amputation, nounamputator, noun

Word Origin for amputate

C17: from Latin amputāre, from am- around + putāre to trim, prune
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Medical definitions for amputate

amputate
[ ămpyu-tāt′ ]

v.
To cut off a part of the body, especially by surgery.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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