decommission

verb

de·​com·​mis·​sion ˌdē-kə-ˈmi-shən How to pronounce decommission (audio)
decommissioned; decommissioning; decommissions

transitive verb

: to remove (something, such as a ship or a nuclear power plant) from service

Examples of decommission in a Sentence

Several military bases are scheduled to be decommissioned. The government is decommissioning the nuclear power plant.
Recent Examples on the Web The company has experience developing new nuclear power plants and maintaining, refurbishing, and decommissioning existing ones. Michael Khouw, CNBC, 23 Sep. 2024 There's a fair chance that China will operate the only space station in low-Earth orbit if NASA and its partners decide to decommission the ISS at the end of the decade. Stephen Clark, Ars Technica, 19 Sep. 2024 Part of the problem is that Axiom has been forced to radically change the design because of its slow progress and the possibility that the ISS could be decommissioned sooner than anticipated, four former employees told Forbes. Jeremy Bogaisky, Forbes, 17 Sep. 2024 The building was decommissioned in the early 1990s when sailors started using GPS to navigate around dangerous obstacles. Graham Averill, Outside Online, 11 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for decommission 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'decommission.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1922, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of decommission was in 1922

Dictionary Entries Near decommission

Cite this Entry

“Decommission.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/decommission. Accessed 6 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

decommission

verb
de·​com·​mis·​sion ˌdē-kə-ˈmish-ən How to pronounce decommission (audio)
: to remove (as a ship) from use or service

More from Merriam-Webster on decommission

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