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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Rather than sitting in landfills when a site is decommissioned, most of the materials used in solar panels can be recycled (though the process can be costly). Anna Clark, ProPublica, 24 Apr. 2026 When the subdomain is eventually decommissioned—something that happens frequently for various reasons—the record is never removed. Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 24 Apr. 2026 It was gradually decommissioned throughout the 1980s and has since been divided up for various uses. Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 24 Apr. 2026 All of this comes about six months after the Navy decommissioned four old, wooden Avenger-class MCM ships that had been working out of Bahrain. Gary Robbins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for decommission

Word History

First Known Use

1922, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of decommission was in 1922

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Decommission.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/decommission. Accessed 28 Apr. 2026.

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

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