behead
v.to cut off someone's head, usually as a punishment or in a fight. It is a very serious and violent word.
v.to decapitate a person or animal, typically as a form of capital punishment or in the context of combat. Transitive — requires a direct object.
“The soldiers were ordered to behead the prisoners.”
“The executioner's blade was designed to behead the condemned with a single, swift stroke, minimizing the duration of the death penalty.”
“The father had threatened to behead a female primary school teacher near Toulouse.”
“She also personally ordered the beheadings of two of the king’s chief counselors.”
From Middle English beheden, bihefden, biheveden, from Old English behēafdian (“to behead”), equivalent to be- (“off, away”) + head.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.