castration

noun

cas·​tra·​tion ka-ˈstrā-shən How to pronounce castration (audio)
plural castrations
1
a
: the removal of the testes or ovaries
b
: chemical castration
… medical castration is more commonly accomplished with gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues.Joseph C. Presti, Jr.
2
: an act or instance of depriving someone or something of its virility, vitality, strength, or effectiveness
"In the history of black men in Hollywood," says [Blair] Underwood, "there's been a castration of sorts. Even Sidney Poitier, our first black male superstar, was never allowed to show that sexual side …"Marilyn Beck
The most famous instance is Nahum Tate's 1681 castration of King Lear, which includes … a complete rewriting of the last scene, so that Cordelia does not die but survives to marry Edgar.Walter Kendrick

Examples of castration in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web That sort of press—the impudent, intrusive, populist variety—serves as a reminder of the British monarchy’s twenty-first-century castration. Clare Malone, The New Yorker, 13 Sep. 2022 Half a century later, the great English critic F. R. Leavis was still using the language of excision, so evocative of, well, castration. Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 30 Jan. 2024 One victim, Dan Levin, who had been beaten and threatened with castration by Ray multiple times, left after a rare night alone led him to the roof of his building to contemplate suicide. Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2023 In later years, some members of the group underwent castration. Claire Weinraub, ABC News, 11 Mar. 2022 Each surgical castration will take a team of eight — including veterinarians, technicians and support staff — between six and eight hours. Nature Magazine, Scientific American, 13 Nov. 2023 And while endoscopic avian vasectomies (where the vas deferens is cut) are less complicated than full castration (where the testes are removed), surgery is still surgery. Patricia Mazzei Alfonso Duran, New York Times, 9 Aug. 2023 Ukrainian officials also reacted with outrage after an unverified video that appeared to show the castration of a Ukrainian prisoner of war by a Russian soldier circulated on social media. Brett Forrest, WSJ, 29 July 2022 The program was developed based on a philosophy that the castration of a stallion will help prevent accidental, backyard, or overbreeding, thereby reducing the number of unwanted horses being born. Hartford Courant, 22 Apr. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'castration.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English castracioun, borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French castration, chastration, borrowed from Latin castrātiōn-, castrātiō, from castrāre "to castrate entry 1" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of verbal action

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of castration was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near castration

Cite this Entry

“Castration.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/castration. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Medical Definition

castration

noun
cas·​tra·​tion kas-ˈtrā-shən How to pronounce castration (audio)
1
: the removal of testes or ovaries
2

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