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
All of the Rats get gruesomely beheaded by Leo Bonhart.
—
Jordan Moreau, Variety, 31 Oct. 2025
Later, Ciri watches helplessly as Bonhart beheads her.
—Jp Mangalindan, Time, 30 Oct. 2025
Around the same time, a statue of Columbus in a park bearing his name in Boston was beheaded in the dead of night.
—Peter D'abrosca, FOXNews.com, 13 Oct. 2025
Walt Disney Imagineering updated the storyline of Black Widow Bride Constance Hatchway earlier this year by turning her from an axe murderer who beheads her wealthy husbands into a more mournful figure overwhelmed by the dread of lost love.
—Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 13 Oct. 2025
More than 30 Christians were beheaded in Mozambique last month, with churches and homes burned down, according to a new report.
—Jordan King, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Oct. 2025
The Barcelona delegate, as portrayed by an overly ceceando Mikey Day, suggested skipping the tiresome lecture, only to be taken off camera to be beheaded.
—Natalie Oganesyan, Deadline, 4 Oct. 2025
The first two of these were found out and, unfortunately for them, beheaded, but fake news had a strong grip.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 28 Sep. 2025
As king, Shakespeare’s Macbeth meets a tragic end when civil war erupts and his rival Macduff beheads him.
—Marlene L. Daut
september 22, Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2025
Jordan Moreau, Variety, 31 Oct. 2025
Later, Ciri watches helplessly as Bonhart beheads her.
—Jp Mangalindan, Time, 30 Oct. 2025
Around the same time, a statue of Columbus in a park bearing his name in Boston was beheaded in the dead of night.
—Peter D'abrosca, FOXNews.com, 13 Oct. 2025
Walt Disney Imagineering updated the storyline of Black Widow Bride Constance Hatchway earlier this year by turning her from an axe murderer who beheads her wealthy husbands into a more mournful figure overwhelmed by the dread of lost love.
—Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 13 Oct. 2025
More than 30 Christians were beheaded in Mozambique last month, with churches and homes burned down, according to a new report.
—Jordan King, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Oct. 2025
The Barcelona delegate, as portrayed by an overly ceceando Mikey Day, suggested skipping the tiresome lecture, only to be taken off camera to be beheaded.
—Natalie Oganesyan, Deadline, 4 Oct. 2025
The first two of these were found out and, unfortunately for them, beheaded, but fake news had a strong grip.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 28 Sep. 2025
As king, Shakespeare’s Macbeth meets a tragic end when civil war erupts and his rival Macduff beheads him.
—Marlene L. Daut
september 22, Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for behead
Verb
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The crimes with which she has been charged are trumped up and her arrest is a cynical ploy by the junta headed by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing to cling onto power.—
Kim Aris,
Time,
7 Nov. 2025
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Leo Varadkar led Ireland and Humza Yousaf headed Scotland’s government.—
Rhea Mogul,
CNN Money,
7 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Apart from Ciri, who assumed the fake name Falka and spent the season with the group, the Rats are extremely dead — not just slaughtered by Leo Bonhart but decapitated with each of their heads sawed off and dumped into a barrel for preservation.—
Scott Meslow,
Vulture,
31 Oct. 2025
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Hands-down one of the most disgusting movies ever made (a compliment), the film finds the indefatigable slasher, who was decapitated at the end of Terrifier 2, reattaching his head and commencing his ritual slaughters.—
Declan Gallagher,
Entertainment Weekly,
31 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Behead.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/behead. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.
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