emasculate

emasculate · verb¹

1. Medieval Latin · borrowed fromēmasculātus
2. English todayemasculate

From Medieval Latin ēmasculātus, perfect passive participle of ēmasculō (“to emasculate”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from ē(x)- (“out, from, apart”) + masculus (“male, masculine”) + -ō (first conjugation verb-forming suffix), further from mās (“a man, a male”) + -culus (diminutive suffix).

emasculate · adjective²

1. Medieval Latin · learned borrowing fromēmasculātus
2. English todayemasculate

Learned borrowing from Medieval Latin ēmasculātus (more at Etymology 1), see -ate (adjective-forming suffix).

First known use, by meaning

• from early 17th c. To deprive of virile or procreative power; to castrate, to geld.
• from early 17th c. To remove the entire male genitalia (the testicles, scrotum, and penis) of (a person or animal).
• from early 17th c. To deprive of masculine vigor or spirit; to weaken; to render effeminate; to vitiate by unmanly softness.