circumcise

verb

cir·​cum·​cise ˈsər-kəm-ˌsīz 

circumcised; circumcising

transitive verb

: to cut off the foreskin of (a male) or the prepuce or clitoris and labia minora of (a female)

circumciser noun

Examples of circumcise in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Many of the million or so new arrivals had never kept kosher or been circumcised, and roughly a quarter of those weren’t considered Jews by Israel’s rabbinic establishment, usually because their mothers, like Zoya’s, weren’t Jewish. —Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 5 Oct. 2024

The New Zealand Herald reports that the patient was bandaged and didn’t realize he’d been fully circumcised until days after he was discharged. —Cara Lynn Shultz, Peoplemag, 12 Aug. 2024

Nearly two years ago, Chanel Ayan revealed on an episode of The Real Housewives of Dubai that she and her older sister Ifrah were circumcised as children without her family’s knowledge. —Dana Rose Falcone, Peoplemag, 27 May 2024

Hunter’s relative, Adam, who was living in Warsaw with false papers, found a way to hide the fact that he was circumcised from a landlord who accused him of being Jewish. —Carly Tagen-Dye, Peoplemag, 24 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin circumcisus, past participle of circumcidere, from circum- + caedere to cut

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

circumcise

verb

cir·​cum·​cise ˈsər-kəm-ˌsīz 

circumcised; circumcising

: to cut off the foreskin of

Medical Definition

circumcise

transitive verb

cir·​cum·​cise ˈsər-kəm-ˌsīz 

circumcised; circumcising

1

: to cut off the foreskin of (a male) or the prepuce of (a female)

2

: to cut off all or part of the external genitalia and especially the clitoris and labia minora of (a female) see female genital mutilation

circumciser noun