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dismember

[ dis-mem-ber ]
/ dɪsˈmɛm bər /
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See synonyms for: dismember / dismembered / dismemberment on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)
to deprive of limbs; divide limb from limb: The ogre dismembered his victims before he ate them.
to divide into parts; cut to pieces; mutilate.
to reduce, reorganize, or discontinue the services or parts of (a company, government agency, etc.): Our business was dismembered by the conglomerate that bought it.
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Origin of dismember

1250–1300; Middle English dismembren<Anglo-French, Old French desmembrer, equivalent to des-dis-1 + -membrer, verbal derivative of membremember

OTHER WORDS FROM dismember

dis·mem·ber·er, noundis·mem·ber·ment, nounnon·dis·mem·ber·ment, noun

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH dismember

disembodied, disemboweled, dismembered
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use dismember in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for dismember

dismember
/ (dɪsˈmɛmbə) /

verb (tr)
to remove the limbs or members of
to cut to pieces
to divide or partition (something, such as an empire)

Derived forms of dismember

dismemberer, noundismemberment, noun
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
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