Gall wasp

[British Red]

To 'decimate' used to mean to 'reduce by 10%'

To be fair the legion decimation can I feel legitimately be equated to " horrifically and violently reduced". Clearly what it didn't mean was "massively reduced in numbers" or "driven to extinction". Indeed the opposite was of course true. The pschological implications of decimation were, I think, almost worse than the physiological.

 

[Toddy]

Well in this case, that's be true for the gall wasp then, wouldn't it
10% year in year out is a fair old reduction in real terms.

Decimate
verb
1.
kill, destroy, or remove a large proportion of.
"the inhabitants of the country had been decimated"
"public transport has been decimated"
2.
historical
kill one in every ten of (a group of people, originally a mutinous Roman legion) as a punishment for the whole group.
"the man who is to determine whether it be necessary to decimate a large body of mutineers"

Modern usage is most likely No.1 on that definition list.

There's a truly excellent mailing list from Michael Quinion on the evolution and context of words in the English language.
http://www.worldwidewords.org/nl/nbkw.htm
I look forward to a new email from him every Saturday morning

cheers,
Mary

 

[British Red]

I think point 2 misses the horror of decimation (which was only used as a punishment for cowardice generally)

Decimation was the killing of 10% of the legion....by the other 90%. In effect you drew straws and the short straws were killed by their friends. If their friends did not kill those chosen by ballot, the whole legion was crucified.