Etymology: c. 1600, in reference to the practice of punishing mutinous military
units by capital execution of one in every 10, by lot; from Latin decimatus, past participle of decimare "the removal or destruction of one-tenth," from decem "ten" (from PIE root *dekm-
"ten"). The killing of one in ten, chosen by lots, from a rebellious
city or a mutinous army was a common punishment in classical times. The
word has been used (incorrectly, to the irritation of pedants) since
1660s for "destroy a large portion of."
Examples:
- However, upon the death of the Baron’s father, Dmitri Harkonnen, the old Emperor had, through some mental deficiency, granted the seat of power to the softhearted Abulurd, who had managed to decimate spice production in a mere seven years. Profits plunged, and he lost control to smugglers and sabotage. (Herbert - House Atreides)
- Prevented from linking with the land forces waiting to invade England from the Low Countries, the Armada was forced to flee back to Spain the long way, around the top of Scotland. Battle damage, bad weather and bad luck decimated what was left of the fleet, and only 60 of the original 130-odd ships made it home. (Coates - Dutch)
- The elders and the chiefs met to discuss what they could do about the wasting disease that was quickly decimating their warriors. (Young - Shack)