Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of verb decimate
2 senses of decimate
Sense 1
decimate -- (kill one in every ten, as of mutineers in Roman armies)
=> kill -- (cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly; "This man killed several people when he tried to rob a bank"; "The farmer killed a pig for the holidays")
Sense 2
eliminate, annihilate, extinguish, eradicate, wipe out, decimate, carry off -- (kill in large numbers; "the plague wiped out an entire population")
=> kill -- (cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly; "This man killed several people when he tried to rob a bank"; "The farmer killed a pig for the holidays")