What is the opposite of the verb animate? I am looking for something meaning "take life out of something."
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1vegitate (just kidding, I think) – GEdgar Jul 30 '11 at 1:41
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How about 'defenestrate?' (or maybe 'exfenestrate' :-) – Pete Wilson Aug 8 '11 at 19:15
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1Why can't you just look this up? A google search yields many results, and the thesaurus is your friend. – Mark Beadles Apr 19 '12 at 2:40
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2How about kill? – zpletan Apr 19 '12 at 3:24
I believe it is uncommon, but disanimate is a word that means to deprive of life that has the same root as animate plus the Latinate prefix dis- which indicates a reversal or negation.
Depress is listed as its antonym and can be used depending on the subject.
Here are a few:
Deaden
Dampen (as in his spirits were dampened)
Dispirit
Quiet/Quieten (As in he quieted the man)