as in to head
to cut off the head of
Mary, Queen of Scots, was beheaded for plotting against Queen Elizabeth
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Recent Examples of behead
This was a one-time golden opportunity to behead the monster with a single blow before those key leaders scattered to the wind.
—
U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Mar. 2026
The last senior member of Britain’s royal family to be arrested in connection with a serious crime was King Charles I, who was beheaded for treason in 1649 following his defeat in the English Civil War.
—Rafi Schwartz, TheWeek, 20 Feb. 2026
After years of scrutiny and criticism over his ties with Epstein, his arrest was the first for a senior royal since Charles I, who was beheaded for treason in 1649.
—Alexander Smith, NBC news, 20 Feb. 2026
Charles was arrested in 1647, convicted of treason, and beheaded in 1649.
—Niall Stanage, The Hill, 19 Feb. 2026
Charles was arrested, tried, convicted of high treason and beheaded in 1649.
—Danica Kirka, Los Angeles Times, 19 Feb. 2026
Long gone are the days when out-of-favor lords could be imprisoned in the Tower of London or beheaded for treason.
—ABC News, 18 Feb. 2026
England had been without a king for eleven years, after Charles’s father was beheaded, on a temporary wooden platform outside Banqueting House, part of the palace of Whitehall.
—Sam Knight, New Yorker, 16 Feb. 2026
Another was almost certainly beheaded; the first vertebra of their spine was cut and there was a big cut mark on their lower jaw.
—Issy Ronald, CNN Money, 4 Feb. 2026
U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Mar. 2026
The last senior member of Britain’s royal family to be arrested in connection with a serious crime was King Charles I, who was beheaded for treason in 1649 following his defeat in the English Civil War.
—Rafi Schwartz, TheWeek, 20 Feb. 2026
After years of scrutiny and criticism over his ties with Epstein, his arrest was the first for a senior royal since Charles I, who was beheaded for treason in 1649.
—Alexander Smith, NBC news, 20 Feb. 2026
Charles was arrested in 1647, convicted of treason, and beheaded in 1649.
—Niall Stanage, The Hill, 19 Feb. 2026
Charles was arrested, tried, convicted of high treason and beheaded in 1649.
—Danica Kirka, Los Angeles Times, 19 Feb. 2026
Long gone are the days when out-of-favor lords could be imprisoned in the Tower of London or beheaded for treason.
—ABC News, 18 Feb. 2026
England had been without a king for eleven years, after Charles’s father was beheaded, on a temporary wooden platform outside Banqueting House, part of the palace of Whitehall.
—Sam Knight, New Yorker, 16 Feb. 2026
Another was almost certainly beheaded; the first vertebra of their spine was cut and there was a big cut mark on their lower jaw.
—Issy Ronald, CNN Money, 4 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for behead
Verb
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Fariba, a woman who asked to be identified by only her first name out of security concerns, was headed to Izmir in western Turkey to wait out the war with her son.—
Serra Yedikardes,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
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Dallas Stars fans head to the arena for an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks at the American Airlines Center on Sunday, March 8, 2026, in Dallas.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The statue was decapitated in late 2022, though its head has since been reattached.—
Graham Womack,
Sacbee.com,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Her body was found in a duffel bag, nearly decapitated, police said.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
4 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Behead.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/behead. Accessed 9 Mar. 2026.
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