decommission

American  

[dee-kuh-mish-uhn] / ˌdi kəˈmɪʃ ən /

verb (used with object)

decommissions, present (3rd person singular) decommissioned, past participle, past decommissioning present participle

1. to remove or retire (a ship, airplane, etc.) from active service.

2. to deactivate; shut down.

   to decommission a nuclear power plant.

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decommission British  

/ ˌdiːkəˈmɪʃən /

verb

1. (tr) to dismantle or remove from service (a nuclear reactor, weapon, ship, etc which is no longer required)

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

• decommissioning
  present
• decommissioned
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• decommission
  simple
• decommissions
  simple
• have decommissioned
  perfect
• has decommissioned
  perfect
• am decommissioning
  progressive
• are decommissioning
  progressive
• is decommissioning
  progressive
• have been decommissioning
  perfect progressive
• has been decommissioning
  perfect progressive

Past

• decommissioned
  simple
• had decommissioned
  perfect
• was decommissioning
  progressive
• were decommissioning
  progressive
• had been decommissioning
  perfect progressive

Future

• will decommission
  simple
• will have decommissioned
  perfect
• will be decommissioning
  progressive
• will have been decommissioning
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of decommission

First recorded in 1925–30; de- + commission

Example Sentences

The committee is in the early stages of setting up a new police force that is meant to decommission Hamas’s weapons once the militant group agrees to hand them over.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 10, 2026

Legacy sales declined 25% due to lower demand as the company continues to decommission its copper-based network, while Latin America sales rose 21%, due in part to favorable foreign-exchange effects.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 22, 2026

Last week, a Hamas delegation met Egyptian, Qatari and Turkish mediators in Cairo to give its initial response to a proposal from the US-led Board of Peace for Palestinian groups to decommission their weapons.

From BBC • Apr. 6, 2026

Cembalest highlights research undertaken by JPMorgan that scrutinized the costs incurred to the German economy stemming from its decision to decommission its nuclear power plants after the Fukushima incident.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 9, 2026

Other sources of power in L.A.’s portfolio include hydrogen, natural gas, biomass, geothermal, nuclear and coal, which the city aims to decommission by the end of this year.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 6, 2025