abscind
transitive verb
ab·scind
abˈsind
-ed/-ing/-s
: to cut off
Word History
Etymology
borrowed from Latin abscindere "to tear off or away," from ab- ab- entry 1 + scindere "to split, separate, tear apart," going back to Indo-European *sḱhi-n-d-, nasal present formation from the base *sḱhei̯̯d- "split, separate"
First Known Use
1610, in the meaning defined above