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decimate

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decimate
decimate /ˈdesəmeɪt, ˈdesɪmeɪt/ verb [transitive]
 Date: 1500-1600
 Language: Latin
 Origin: decimatus, past participle of decimare 'to remove one tenth, kill one in ten', from decem 'ten'
to destroy a large part of something:
    The population has been decimated by disease.
—decimation /ˌdesəˈmeɪʃən, ˌdesɪˈmeɪʃən/ noun [uncountable]