decapitate
首を切り落とす
解説 Definition
人や動物の首を切り落として頭部を胴体から切断すること。
Decapitate means to cut off a person's or animal's head. It is a very strong and graphic word, used mainly in medical, historical, legal, or violent contexts.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
de- は「取り去る」、cap は capital や captain のように「頭・主要部」を連想すると覚えやすい。つまり decapitate は「頭を取り去る」動作。単なる「殺す」ではなく、首を切って頭部を胴体から離す点が核心で、ニュースでは人だけでなく statue was decapitated のように像の首が落とされる文脈でも出る。execute や assassinate より方法がかなり具体的な語。
Break it into `de-` and `cap`. `De-` often suggests removal, and `cap` can remind you of `capital` or `captain`, words linked to the head or main part. That makes the word easy to store as a very specific action, not just a general word for killing.
例文
The executioner was ordered to decapitate the traitor in the public square.
処刑人は反逆者の首を公の広場で切り落とすよう命じられた。
In ancient times, enemies were sometimes decapitated as a warning to others.
古代では、敵は他の者への警告として首を切り落とされることがあった。
The statue in the museum had been decapitated during the revolution.
博物館のその像は革命中に首を切り落とされていた。
decapitate の類義語・関連語
decapitate の語源・成り立ち Etymology
decapitate はラテン語 de-「取り去る」+ capit-「頭」（caput）+ -ate で、文字通り「頭を外す」です。capital や captain も同じ caput 系で、頭が転じて「主要なもの」を表すと知ると、首を切る語感が直感的に見えてきます。
`Decapitate` comes from Latin parts meaning "remove the head": `de-` meaning "off" or "away," and `caput` meaning "head." Through later Latin forms, it entered English with the literal sense of taking off a head. The same root appears in words like `capital` and `captain`, where the idea of the head developed into the sense of what is chief or leading.
外部辞書で調べる
この単語を英単語クイズで覚えよう