vivisect

[ viv-uh-sekt, viv-uh-sekt ]

/ ˈvɪv əˌsɛkt, ˌvɪv əˈsɛkt /

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verb (used with object)

to dissect the living body of (an animal).

verb (used without object)

to practice vivisection.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

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Origin of vivisect

First recorded in 1860–65; back formation from vivisection

OTHER WORDS FROM vivisect

viv·i·sec·tor, nounself-viv·i·sec·tor, noun

Words nearby vivisect

vivianite, vivid, vividly, vivify, viviparous, vivisect, vivisection, vivisectionist, vivo, Vivyan, vixen

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

How to use vivisect in a sentence

Mason-wasps deliberately vivisect spiders, which are insects extremely tenacious of life.
Furze the Cruel|John Trevena
To do any great thing with the heart of another, you must vivisect your own, and this truth Theodora had to practise continually.
A Reconstructed Marriage|Amelia Edith Huddleston Barr
The man who can vivisect an emotion, and lay bare a heart-beat in print, knows a subtle joy.
Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great Philosophers, Volume 8|Elbert Hubbard
Whether they vivisect painfully or painlessly, they are trying to find out whether the truth is there or not.
Eugenics and Other Evils|G. K. Chesterton

He is not allowed to try his germs and specifics upon them; he is not allowed to vivisect them.
Damn!|Henry Louis Mencken

British Dictionary definitions for vivisect

vivisect

/ (ˈvɪvɪˌsɛkt, ˌvɪvɪˈsɛkt) /

verb

to subject (an animal) to vivisection

Derived forms of vivisect

vivisector, noun

Word Origin for vivisect

C19: back formation from vivisection

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