amputate means to cut off, to prune. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 82 out of 100.
amputate is pronounced /ˈæmpjʊteɪt/.
Etymology
From Latin amputō (“prune, cut away”). The original sense of pruning (a tree, etc.) became obsolete. The OED considers uses related to anything other than an animal limb to be figurative uses of the modern sense.
verb
- To cut off, to prune.
- To surgically remove a part of the body, especially a limb.“The surgeon had to amputate the patient’s leg to save his life.”