decapitate

Etymology

From French décapiter, from Late Latin decapitare, from de- + caput.

verb

1. (transitive, literally) To remove the head of.
   Employee #1 was in the center of the runway, working alone approximately 300 feet from the end that led to the plane loading area and hangars. A pilot flying an airplane, Schweizer Aircraft Corporation Model G-164 B, approached the airstrip from the opposite end and landed. As the pilot taxied the plane toward the hangar, the plane's propeller struck Employee #1 in the head and decapitated him. 2013, “Accident: 202674701 - Worker Paving Airstrip Is Struck By Airplane And Decapitated”, in Occupational Safety and Health Administration, archived from the original on 2022-07-15
2. (transitive, figurative) To oust or destroy the leadership or ruling body of (a government etc.).
   The Russian goal at the start of the invasion had been to kill or capture Zelensky and decapitate his government. December 7 2022, Simon Shuster, “2022 Person of the Year: Volodymyr Zelensky”, in Time