as in to sever
medical
to remove (part of a person's body)
His arm was badly injured and had to be amputated.
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of amputate
Nearly a month and 277 miles into their journey, in Dayton, Texas, two monks were hit by a car, resulting in one having his leg amputated.
—
Meagan Jordan, Rolling Stone, 8 Feb. 2026
Brenna was forced to amputate her right leg above the knee after a devastating cancer diagnosis in her teens.
—Outside Online, 4 Feb. 2026
At 14, Huckaby was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a rare bone cancer, that ended with her right leg being amputated and her dreams of a gymnastics career dashed.
—Sean Neumann, PEOPLE, 3 Feb. 2026
Lee, an Army combat veteran, was injured in a motorcycle accident in 2009 and had his left leg amputated above the knee.
—Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 2 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for amputate
Meagan Jordan, Rolling Stone, 8 Feb. 2026
Brenna was forced to amputate her right leg above the knee after a devastating cancer diagnosis in her teens.
—Outside Online, 4 Feb. 2026
At 14, Huckaby was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a rare bone cancer, that ended with her right leg being amputated and her dreams of a gymnastics career dashed.
—Sean Neumann, PEOPLE, 3 Feb. 2026
Lee, an Army combat veteran, was injured in a motorcycle accident in 2009 and had his left leg amputated above the knee.
—Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 2 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for amputate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for amputate
Verb
-
The digital video poster went live in November, featuring Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi’s character Dek holding aloft a smaller, human figure, which had been severed in two.—
Jake Kanter,
Deadline,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Dozens more clients have severed ties with the agency over Wasserman’s Epstein controversy.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The National Institutes of Health, part of HHS, also yanked dozens of research grants supporting studies of vaccine hesitancy last year.—
Amanda Seitz,
NPR,
13 Feb. 2026
-
No agents of the state will yank you out of a stadium for bopping along to this!—
Alexandra Petri,
The Atlantic,
9 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Amputate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/amputate. Accessed 20 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
