neutering

neu·ter

N0073400 (no͞o′tər, nyo͞o′-)adj.1. Grammar a. Neither masculine nor feminine in gender.b. Neither active nor passive; intransitive. Used of verbs.2. Biology a. Having undeveloped or nonfunctional sexual organs: the neuter caste in social insects.b. Having pistils and stamens that are nonfunctional or absent.3. Castrated or spayed. Used of animals.4. Androgynous or asexual.5. Archaic Taking no side in a dispute; neutral.n.1. Grammar a. The neuter gender.b. A neuter word.c. A neuter noun.2. An androgynous or asexual person.3. A castrated animal.4. An insect that has undeveloped or nonfunctional sexual organs, such as a worker bee.5. Archaic One that is neutral in a dispute.tr.v. neu·tered, neu·ter·ing, neu·ters 1. To castrate or spay.2. To render ineffective or powerless: a scandal that neutered the politician.

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[Middle English neutre, from Old French, from Latin neuter, neither, neuter : ne-, not; see ne in Indo-European roots + uter, either; see k^wo- in Indo-European roots.]

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

neutering - the sterilization of an animal; "they took him to the vet for neutering"altering, fixingsterilisation, sterilization - the act of making an organism barren or infertile (unable to reproduce)castration, emasculation - neutering a male animal by removing the testiclesspaying - neutering a female by removing the ovaries