scalping

verb

present participle of scalp
as in beheading

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for scalping
  1. beheading
  2. decapitating
  3. pruning
Verb
  • Yordanis Cobos-Martinez, 37, was arrested in September 2025 in the beheading death of Chandra Nagamallaiah using a machete, Dallas police have said.
    — Shambhavi Rimal, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 July 2026
  • In the scene, massive logs strapped to a moving truck come undone and trigger multiple horrific deaths on a highway, with one log smashing through a state trooper’s car window and beheading him.
    — Brian Anthony Hernandez, PEOPLE, 11 July 2026
Definition of beheading
Verb
  • After decapitating the body, Kennedy tied the head to the top of the family's minivan with a bungee cord, making for a less-than-pleasant five-hour drive back home to Mount Kisco, New York, according to her recollection.
    — Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 26 May 2026
  • Trump took hostilities to a new level during his second term, launching strikes on land and at sea and ultimately decapitating the government.
    — Joseph Konig, PEOPLE, 13 May 2026
Definition of decapitating
Verb
  • Such weather favored flowering, and Chow responded by pruning to prevent deformed or small fruit while stepping up watering and fertilization because of the heat.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 5 Aug. 2026
  • For specific issues with boxwood blight, Goetz recommends pruning the affected area to prevent the disease from spreading.
    — Samantha Johnson, Martha Stewart, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of pruning
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.

Browse Nearby Words

scalpers
scalping
scalps
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Cite this Entry

“Scalping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scalping. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on scalping

Nglish: Translation of scalping for Spanish Speakers

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