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.
You are not the first person that comes to mind when casting a cowboy, and you trained extensively to portray Phil and his life accurately, even learning to brand and castrate cattle.
From New York Times • Feb. 8, 2022
The anxiety of influence can trigger hysterical pastiche or castrate an author’s creativity.
From Washington Post • Dec. 28, 2020
“Lay people can castrate and dehorn, but they don’t always recognize if an animal is sick,” he said.
From Washington Times • Mar. 21, 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
They would not castrate or shear animals unless the moon was right, and they would not gather crops or save next year’s seeds unless the moon dictated.
From "Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya
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.
