eviscerate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to remove the entrails from; disembowel.
to eviscerate a chicken.
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to deprive of vital or essential parts.
The censors eviscerated the book to make it inoffensive to the leaders of the party.
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Surgery. to remove the contents of (a body organ).
verb
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(tr) to remove the internal organs of; disembowel
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(tr) to deprive of meaning or significance
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(tr) surgery to remove the contents of (the eyeball or other organ)
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(intr) surgery (of the viscera) to protrude through a weakened abdominal incision after an operation
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of eviscerate
First recorded in 1600–10; from Latin ēviscerātus, past participle of ēviscerāre “to deprive of entrails, tear to pieces,” equivalent to ē- e- 1 + viscer(a) viscera + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
Eviscerate is not a pretty word. To eviscerate can mean to remove the entrails of a creature. On the Discovery Channel you can watch a vulture eviscerate or take out the guts of a dead animal. The word eviscerate comes from the Latin eviscerare, meaning "to disembowel." It's not strictly used in such a gruesome sense though. Sure, you can eviscerate a chicken by gutting its insides, but eviscerate can also be used to describe when you deprive something of its most important quality. If you take away the disco ball, it could eviscerate the spirit of your dance party.
Vocabulary lists containing eviscerate
The Things They Carried
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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., "Beyond Vietnam" (1967)
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"On the Vietnam War, 1967," Vocabulary from the speech
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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.
If something went awry, as things generally did, Jobs would find a scapegoat to eviscerate, preferably in front of everyone else.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 17, 2026
“This is a gross and exploitative attempt by Robbie Robertson’s children to eviscerate their father’s expressed wishes for his beloved wife Janet.”
From Los Angeles Times • May 23, 2024
She rarely shows up in viral clips because she doesn’t tend to eviscerate anyone or lose it on air.
From Slate • May 15, 2024
Melt caves will eviscerate more and more glaciers—creating lakes that could release devastating floods.
From National Geographic • Jan. 10, 2024
He didn’t know anyone who could eviscerate someone with words quite like Aunt Hila.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
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.
