as in severing
medical
to remove (part of a person's body)
His arm was badly injured and had to be amputated.
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Recent Examples of amputating
Cassie’s life is changing all the time, while her husband, Nate Jacobs, is stuck in a finger-amputating Groundhog Day.
—
Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 18 May 2026
The suit says that Cantrell was eventually transferred to Oregon Health & Science University hospital, where doctors immediately recognized his condition as life-threatening, stabilized him and performed multiple surgeries, including amputating his arm up to his shoulder.
—Minyvonne Burke, NBC news, 12 May 2026
Before his death, attempts had been made to save Abrahams by amputating his leg, ITV reported.
—Becca Longmire, PEOPLE, 21 Jan. 2026
The main characters, who wake up chained to pipes, quickly realize amputating their own foot is the only means of escape.
—The Atlantic Culture Desk, The Atlantic, 29 Oct. 2025
What to know about California’s new claw law Declawing a cat involves cutting and amputating the first joint of a cat’s paw — essentially removing the toe, according to the San Francisco SPCA.
—Sacbee.com, 14 Oct. 2025
Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 18 May 2026
The suit says that Cantrell was eventually transferred to Oregon Health & Science University hospital, where doctors immediately recognized his condition as life-threatening, stabilized him and performed multiple surgeries, including amputating his arm up to his shoulder.
—Minyvonne Burke, NBC news, 12 May 2026
Before his death, attempts had been made to save Abrahams by amputating his leg, ITV reported.
—Becca Longmire, PEOPLE, 21 Jan. 2026
The main characters, who wake up chained to pipes, quickly realize amputating their own foot is the only means of escape.
—The Atlantic Culture Desk, The Atlantic, 29 Oct. 2025
What to know about California’s new claw law Declawing a cat involves cutting and amputating the first joint of a cat’s paw — essentially removing the toe, according to the San Francisco SPCA.
—Sacbee.com, 14 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for amputating
Verb
-
Then came the collapse of the Assad regime, in Syria, severing the land route long used by Hezbollah to transport rockets, antitank missiles, and precision-guidance systems from its Iranian patron.—
Euan Ward,
New Yorker,
29 May 2026
-
Cook County Judge Thomas Lyons, presiding judge of the Law Division, granted a motion from the city of Chicago to split the trial in two, severing the claims of negligent hiring by the city from the allegations around the shooting by Officer Eric Stillman.—
Madeline Buckley,
Chicago Tribune,
28 May 2026
Verb
-
The lifeguard pursued me in a gray metal dinghy with a bullhorn, ordering me out of the water and yanking me up over the side of his boat.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 May 2026
-
Essentially, yanking gravity away is another tool, just like temperature or pressure, that drug manufacturers can apply to improve their products.—
Eric Berger,
ArsTechnica,
13 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Amputating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/amputating. Accessed 3 Jun. 2026.
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