decorticate

American  

[dee-kawr-ti-keyt] / diˈkɔr tɪˌkeɪt /

verb (used with object)

decorticated, decorticating

1. to remove the bark, husk, or outer covering from.

2. Surgery. to remove the cortex from (an organ or structure).

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decorticate British  

/ diːˈkɔːtɪˌkeɪt /

verb

1. (tr) to remove the bark or some other outer layer from

2. surgery to remove the cortex of (an organ or part)

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Other Word Forms

• decortication noun
• decorticator noun
• undecorticated adjective

Etymology

Origin of decorticate

1605–15; < Latin dēcorticātus (past participle of dēcorticāre to peel), equivalent to dē- de- + corticātus having bark, shell; corticate

Example Sentences

"Far from infrequent, on decorticate pine, of Lycogala atrum a constant companion"!

From The North American Slime-Moulds A Descriptive List of All Species of Myxomycetes Hitherto Reported from the Continent of North America, with Notes on Some Extra-Limital Species by MacBride, Thomas H. (Thomas Huston)

Whenever a machine is invented that will economically decorticate the Ramie fiber, its cultivation will become an important industry in this country.

From The Hawaiian Islands Their Resources, Agricultural, Commercial and Financial by Hawaii. Dept. of Foreign Affairs