decorticate

[ dee-kawr-ti-keyt ]

verb (used with object)

, de·cor·ti·cat·ed, de·cor·ti·cat·ing.

1. to remove the bark, husk, or outer covering from.
2. Surgery. to remove the cortex from (an organ or structure).

decorticate

/ diːˈkɔːtɪˌkeɪt /

verb

1. tr to remove the bark or some other outer layer from
2. surgery to remove the cortex of (an organ or part)

Derived Forms

• deˈcortiˌcator, noun
• deˌcortiˈcation, noun

Other Words From

• de·corti·cator noun
• unde·corti·cated adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of decorticate¹

1605–15; < Latin dēcorticātus (past participle of dēcorticāre to peel), equivalent to dē- de- + corticātus having bark, shell; corticate

Word History and Origins

Origin of decorticate¹

C17: from Latin dēcorticāre, from de- + -corticāre, from cortex bark

Example Sentences

His hands were contorted in a strange way — in what neurologists describe as “decorticate posturing,” an indication of brain injury.

From Washington Post

Consciousness in congenitally decorticate children: developmental vegetative state as self-fulfilling prophecy.

From Scientific American

Many copra-making plants in India and Ceylon are now supplied with decorticating, breaking, and evaporating machinery.

From Project Gutenberg

The outlay for fencing against wandering flocks of goats and for decorticating machinery and other expenses would deter the ordinary cultivator from planting, and this could only be profitably undertaken if ample capital were forthcoming.

From Project Gutenberg

This removal of the shell makes a great difference in the oilcake, as the decorticated cake is more nutritious than the undecorticated.

From Project Gutenberg