DEFINITIONS

behead

[ bih-hed ]
/ bɪˈhɛd /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR behead ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to cut off the head of; kill or execute by decapitation.
Geology. (of a pirate stream) to divert the headwaters of (a river, stream, etc.).

Content related to behead

Why Exposure Is Our 2014 Word Of The YearIn 2014, the Ebola virus, widespread theft of personal information, and shocking acts of violence and brutality dominated the news. Vulnerability and visibility were at the core of the year’s most notable headlines. Encapsulating those themes, Dictionary.com’s Word of the Year for 2014 is exposure. The word exposure entered English in the early 1600s to refer to a state of being without shelter or protection. …
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Words related to behead

execute, guillotine, kill, head, neck, decollate

Words nearby behead

behaviour therapy, behavioural contagion, behavioural science, behavioural sink, behaviourism, behead, beheld, behemoth, behenic, behenic acid, behest

Origin of behead

before 1000; Middle English behe(f)den, beheveden, Old English behēafdian. See be-, head

OTHER WORDS FROM behead

be·head·al, nounbe·head·er, nounun·be·head·ed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for behead

British Dictionary definitions for behead

behead
/ (bɪˈhɛd) /

verb

(tr) to remove the head from; decapitate

Word Origin for behead

Old English behēafdian, from be- + heafod head; related to Middle High German behoubeten
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