DECIMATION
decimation
(noun) destroying or killing a large part of the population (literally every tenth person as chosen by lot)
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Noun
decimation (plural decimations)
(strictly) The killing or punishment of every tenth person, usually by lot.
(generally) The killing or destruction of any large portion of a population.
A tithe or the act of tithing.
(mathematics) The creation of a new sequence comprising only every nth element of a source sequence.
(signal processing) A digital signal-processing technique for reducing the number of samples in a discrete-time signal; downsampling
Synonyms
• (the act of killing or punishing each tenth person): tithing
• (the payment of a tenth to the clergy): See tithe
Coordinate terms
• (proportionate reduction, by single aliquot part): quintation (1/5), septimation (1/7), decimation (1/10), vicesimation (1/20), tricesimation (1/30), centesimation (1/100)
Anagrams
• medication
Source: Wiktionary
Dec`i*ma"tion, n. Etym: [L. decimatio: cf. F. décimation.]
1. A tithing. [Obs.] State Trials (1630).
2. A selection of every tenth person by lot, as for punishment. Shak.
3. The destruction of any large proportion, as of people by pestilence or war. Milman.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
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18 April 2025
GROIN
(noun) the crease at the junction of the inner part of the thigh with the trunk together with the adjacent region and often including the external genitals
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