Background for decimated

decimated

/ˈdɛsɪmeɪtɪd/ /ˈdɛsəmeɪtɪd/

Illustration decimated - Image 1

verb

To kill one-tenth of a group, (specifically) as a military punishment in the Roman army selected by lot, usually carried out by the surviving soldiers.

Examples :

"The Roman legion's mutiny was brutally suppressed; as punishment, they were decimated, with every tenth man chosen by lot and executed by his comrades. "

military history war group action number

Illustration decimated - Image 1

verb

To destroy or remove one-tenth of anything.

Examples :

"The flu decimated the office staff, leaving only 90% of the employees able to work. "

military disaster war history

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verb

To devastate: to reduce or destroy significantly but not completely.

Examples :

"The heavy rain decimated the tomato crop; most of the plants were ruined, but some still produced a few tomatoes. "

disaster military war history environment

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verb

To exact a tithe or other 10% tax

Examples :

"The school district decimated its budget by requiring a 10% cut from all departments. "

economy finance business government

Illustration decimated - Image 1

verb

To tithe: to pay a 10% tax.

Examples :

"The villagers decimated their harvest, giving one-tenth to the temple. "

number economy business finance

Illustration decimated - Image 1

verb

To decimalize: to divide into tenths, hundredths etc.

Examples :

"The teacher decimated the long division problem into smaller, more manageable steps. "

Illustration decimated - Image 1

verb

To reduce to one-tenth: to destroy or remove nine-tenths of anything.

Examples :

"The invasive insect population decimated the farmer's corn crop, leaving only a small fraction of plants standing. "

military disaster war history number amount

Illustration decimated - Image 1

verb

To replace a high-resolution model with another of lower but acceptable quality.

Examples :

"To improve website loading speed on mobile devices, the developers decimated the high-resolution product images, using smaller, compressed versions instead. "

technology computing technical