castrate

[ kas-treyt ]
See synonyms for: castratecastratedcastration on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object),cas·trat·ed, cas·trat·ing.
  1. to remove the testes of; emasculate; geld.

  2. to remove the ovaries of.

  1. Psychology. to render impotent, literally or metaphorically, by psychological means, especially by threatening a person's masculinity or femininity.

  2. to deprive of strength, power, or efficiency; weaken: Without those ten new submarines, our navy will be castrated.

noun
  1. a castrated person or animal.

Origin of castrate

1
First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin castrātus, past participle of castrāre “to geld,” equivalent to castr- “geld” + -ātus past participle suffix; see -ate1

Other words from castrate

  • cas·tra·tion [kas-trey-shuhn], /ˌkæsˈtreɪ ʃən/, noun
  • cas·tra·tor, noun

Words Nearby castrate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use castrate in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for castrate

castrate

/ (kæˈstreɪt) /


verb(tr)
  1. to remove the testicles of; emasculate; geld

  2. to deprive of vigour, masculinity, etc

  1. to remove the ovaries of; spay

  2. to expurgate or censor (a book, play, etc)

Origin of castrate

1
C17: from Latin castrāre to emasculate, geld

Derived forms of castrate

  • castration, noun
  • castrator, noun

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