pillage, exalt, rue, decimate, disseminate: meanings and examples

Learn these 5 words from Proficient Plus set 40. Each entry includes a definition, example sentence, pronunciation, and synonyms. Use the interactive cards above to practice them.

1. pillage · verb/ˈpɪl.ɪdʒ/

   to rob a place or area of goods by force

   The soldiers came to pillage the village and took everything they could find.

   Synonyms: loot, ransack, plunder

   Origin: from Middle English 'pillager', from Old French 'piller' meaning 'to plunder'

2. exalt · verb/ɪɡˈzɑlt/

   to raise in rank, honor, power, or character

   The leader was exalted by the people for his brave actions during the crisis.

   Synonyms: elevate, promote, uplift

   Origin: from Latin 'exaltare', meaning 'to lift up' or 'raise high'

3. rue · verb/ru/

   to feel regret or remorse for something

   He will rue the day he decided to skip school.

   Synonyms: regret, remorse, lament

   Origin: Middle English 'ruen', from Old French 'ruer', from Latin 'rugere' meaning 'to roar or to be upset'

4. decimate · verb/ˈdɛsəˌmeɪt/

   to destroy a large percentage of something

   The wildfire can decimate large areas of the forest in just a few hours.

   Synonyms: destroy, ruin, devastate

   Origin: The word 'decimate' comes from the Latin 'decimare', meaning 'to take a tenth.' It originally referred to a method of punishing a group of soldiers by killing one in every ten.

5. disseminate · verb/dɪˈsɛmɪneɪt/

   to spread or disperse information or ideas widely

   The teacher will disseminate the study materials to all the students before the exam.

   Synonyms: spread, distribute, circulate

   Origin: from Latin 'disseminare', meaning 'to scatter seeds'