vivisect

verb

viv·​i·​sect ˈvi-və-ˌsekt How to pronounce vivisect (audio)
vivisected; vivisecting; vivisects

transitive verb

: to perform vivisection on : subject to vivisection

intransitive verb

: to practice vivisection
vivisector
ˈvi-və-ˌsek-tər How to pronounce vivisect (audio)
noun

Examples of vivisect in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Michael Shannon is the ruthless government agent who would like to vivisect the creature. — Robin Givhan, chicagotribune.com, 4 Mar. 2018 Its members seek to avenge the natural world, to kill scientists who vivisect animals or breed germs for warfare. — Katy Waldman, The New Yorker, 20 Sep. 2021 Watchmen‘s cast is quite a bit more diverse than the comic book, which honored (and, to be clear, totally vivisected) the white-dudes-plus-a-lady layout of most pre-millennial superteams. — Darren Franich, EW.com, 15 Oct. 2019 And quite possibly, no recent film better exemplifies these triumphs than Beyoncé's best documentary feature hopeful Homecoming, which vivisects the commitment required to be a modern-day pop legend. — Robyn Bahr, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Nov. 2019 Ben Thompson, the founder of Stratechery, a website that vivisects Silicon Valley companies, has incisively described Amazon’s master plan. — Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 10 Oct. 2019 Indeed, the characters use every conceivable swear word in English—and a few in French—to vivisect each other with almost Shakespearean invective (if Shakespeare had been drunk, Canadian, and a survivor of several concussive jet-ski accidents). — Cintra Wilson, The New York Review of Books, 24 July 2020 When Maza lodged his complaints about Crowder — whose actual offense, it should be noted, was occasionally vivisecting Maza’s purported acts of journalism — the powers that be at YouTube did their best impersonation of Pontius Pilate. — Kevin D. Williamson, National Review, 6 June 2019

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from vivisection

First Known Use

1864, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of vivisect was in 1864

Rhymes for vivisect

See All Rhymes for vivisect

Browse Nearby Words

viviperfuse
vivisect
vivisectible
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Vivisect.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vivisect. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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