to demasculinize
- verb
- /ˌdiːˈmæskjʊlaɪnˌaɪz/
- Specialized
Examples
-
This finding raises the question of how the high estrogen levels found in the blood of males masculinize song without demasculinizing copulatory behavior?
Academic text (1994) -
The presence of high estrogen levels in the blood of developing males is interesting, but also somewhat problematic—estrogens are known to demasculinize the avian phenotype.
Academic text (1994) -
Veterinarians sometimes need to demasculinize male animals to control their population.
-
Farmers may choose to demasculinize male livestock to prevent unwanted breeding.
-
To prevent aggressive behavior, the shelter decided to demasculinize the male dogs before adoption.
Synonyms
To remove an animal's organs used to make babies so it cannot reproduce
To remove the sex organs of a person or animal so they cannot have young
To make a person or animal unable to have children by a medical operation
To remove a male animal's testicles so it cannot have babies
Remove the testicles of a male animal
To stop an animal from having babies by removing or damaging its reproductive organs
To make a person or animal unable to have babies
Surface Forms
Morphology
demasculinize = masculinize (opaque) = de + masculin + ize
Although formed by de- + masculinize, the surgical sense 'to remove the testicles' is a specialized, non-obvious interpretation that learners cannot reliably predict from the parts.
Etymology
Demasculinize comes from the part de- meaning 'remove' and masculine meaning 'male'. So to demasculinize an animal is to remove its testicles, which stops it from having babies.