as in to head
to cut off the head of
Mary, Queen of Scots, was beheaded for plotting against Queen Elizabeth
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Recent Examples of behead
She was dismembered, de-fleshed, and even beheaded before being burned.
—
Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 4 Jan. 2026
Joyce beheads Vecna while all the characters expel their collective trauma from five seasons of violence and misery.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 31 Dec. 2025
According to Open Doors, the continent’s most populous nation saw the worst persecution in Africa in 2025, with ‘non-stop stories of deadly attacks and kidnappings’ across Nigeria’s north and Middle Belt — a litany of villages torched, citizens raped, abducted, shot and beheaded.
—Paul Tilsley, FOXNews.com, 28 Dec. 2025
On subsequent songs, Ninajirachi sings about the destruction of her innocence through sexting, and the trauma of coming across a beheading video.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 12 Dec. 2025
But the week of Thanksgiving, the couple was shocked when one of their 20 bison was shot, killed and beheaded on the family’s ranch near County Road 301 and FM 3108, south of Lindsay.
—Shambhavi Rimal, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Dec. 2025
At the same time, the barrage of vitriol unleashed by China castigating Takaichi as a warmongering militarist includes a reprehensible threat by the Chinese consul-general in Osaka about beheading Takaichi.
—Jeff Kingston, Time, 30 Nov. 2025
On September 7, ISIS began a strident offensive again, hitting its former stronghold of Mocimboa da Praia, beheading dozens of mostly Christian men over the course of several weeks, and triggering the flight of tens of thousands of residents.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 21 Nov. 2025
But then another victim was found — a 26-year-old Yosemite naturalist named Joie Ruth Armstrong, who was found beheaded.
—Virginia Chamlee, PEOPLE, 15 Nov. 2025
Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 4 Jan. 2026
Joyce beheads Vecna while all the characters expel their collective trauma from five seasons of violence and misery.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 31 Dec. 2025
According to Open Doors, the continent’s most populous nation saw the worst persecution in Africa in 2025, with ‘non-stop stories of deadly attacks and kidnappings’ across Nigeria’s north and Middle Belt — a litany of villages torched, citizens raped, abducted, shot and beheaded.
—Paul Tilsley, FOXNews.com, 28 Dec. 2025
On subsequent songs, Ninajirachi sings about the destruction of her innocence through sexting, and the trauma of coming across a beheading video.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 12 Dec. 2025
But the week of Thanksgiving, the couple was shocked when one of their 20 bison was shot, killed and beheaded on the family’s ranch near County Road 301 and FM 3108, south of Lindsay.
—Shambhavi Rimal, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Dec. 2025
At the same time, the barrage of vitriol unleashed by China castigating Takaichi as a warmongering militarist includes a reprehensible threat by the Chinese consul-general in Osaka about beheading Takaichi.
—Jeff Kingston, Time, 30 Nov. 2025
On September 7, ISIS began a strident offensive again, hitting its former stronghold of Mocimboa da Praia, beheading dozens of mostly Christian men over the course of several weeks, and triggering the flight of tens of thousands of residents.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 21 Nov. 2025
But then another victim was found — a 26-year-old Yosemite naturalist named Joie Ruth Armstrong, who was found beheaded.
—Virginia Chamlee, PEOPLE, 15 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for behead
Verb
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Then, after Beck threw an interception, the Rebels were able to cut the lead to 17-16 in favor of the Hurricanes heading into the fourth quarter for the ages.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
9 Jan. 2026
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Both will now likely head to arbitration hearings.—
Jaylon Thompson,
Kansas City Star,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Apart from Ciri, who assumed the fake name Falka and spent the season with the group, the Rats are extremely dead — not just slaughtered by Leo Bonhart but decapitated with each of their heads sawed off and dumped into a barrel for preservation.—
Scott Meslow,
Vulture,
31 Oct. 2025
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Hands-down one of the most disgusting movies ever made (a compliment), the film finds the indefatigable slasher, who was decapitated at the end of Terrifier 2, reattaching his head and commencing his ritual slaughters.—
Declan Gallagher,
Entertainment Weekly,
31 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Behead.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/behead. Accessed 10 Jan. 2026.
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