devitalize

American  

[dee-vahyt-l-ahyz] / diˈvaɪt lˌaɪz /

especially British, devitalise

verb (used with object)

devitalized, devitalizing

1. to deprive of vitality or vital properties; make lifeless; weaken.

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devitalize British  

/ diːˈvaɪtəˌlaɪz /

verb

1. (tr) to lower or destroy the vitality of; make weak or lifeless

   the war devitalized the economy

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Other Word Forms

• devitalization noun

Etymology

Origin of devitalize

First recorded in 1840–50; de- + vitalize

Example Sentences

This can devitalize the plant to the point of it starting to die back.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 22, 2023

So this latter phenomenon physicians use to devitalize cancerous growths-and on the ovaries to bring on artificial menopause.

From Time Magazine Archive

These shoots are useless, devitalize the vine, and hinder vineyard operations.

From Manual of American Grape-Growing by Hedrick, U. P.

His opinions, whatever they are, do not devitalize his fiction.

From The Critical Game by Macy, John Albert

Its effect must have also been to devitalize the oxygen and nitrogen of the atmosphere.

From A Republic Without a President and Other Stories by Ward, Herbert D. (Herbert Dickinson)