Synonyms of behead

behead

verb

bi-ˈhed 

as in to head

to cut off the head of

Mary, Queen of Scots, was beheaded for plotting against Queen Elizabeth

Synonyms & Similar Words

• head
• decapitate
• guillotine
• trim
• shorten
• scalp
• prune
• decollate

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of behead

Four Haitian women who were deported from the United States in February were found beheaded and dumped in a river several months later, lawyers said in court documents. —Lindsay Whitehurst, Chicago Tribune, 29 Apr. 2026

Here’s another, similarly beheaded, on Seventh Avenue near 30th Street. —Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 16 Apr. 2026

Several of the women pleaded to be beheaded before the fire was lit and were granted this mercy. —Literary Hub, 7 Apr. 2026

Many of the men were beheaded and women captured; Umar ibn Sa’d marched the spiked heads and shackled women through various towns on the way back to Caliph Yazid in Damascus to deter further protest. —Mary Thurlkill, The Conversation, 30 Mar. 2026

While Elizabeth's Buffy does get beheaded late in Scary Movie, most of the characters have died and then magically been fine once the next outing begins. —Derek Lawrence, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Mar. 2026

This was a one-time golden opportunity to behead the monster with a single blow before those key leaders scattered to the wind. —U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Mar. 2026

The last senior member of Britain’s royal family to be arrested in connection with a serious crime was King Charles I, who was beheaded for treason in 1649 following his defeat in the English Civil War. —Rafi Schwartz, TheWeek, 20 Feb. 2026

After years of scrutiny and criticism over his ties with Epstein, his arrest was the first for a senior royal since Charles I, who was beheaded for treason in 1649. —Alexander Smith, NBC news, 20 Feb. 2026