definitions
  • synonyms

behead

[ bih-hed ]
/ bɪˈhɛd /
|
SEE MORE 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.).

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RELATED WORDS

execute, guillotine, kill, head, neck, decollate

Nearby words

behavioural, 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
Related formsbe·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

Word Origin and History for behead

behead

v.

Old English beheafdian, from be-, here with privative force, + heafod (see head (n.)). Related: Beheaded; beheading.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper