cannibalize
cannibalize Lexical Profile
cannibalize Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To take serviceable parts from one machine or vehicle in order to repair or build another.
"The mechanics had to cannibalize an older tractor for spare parts to keep the main harvester running."
To reduce the sales or market share of an existing product by introducing a similar new product from the same producer.
"Executives worried that launching a budget tablet would cannibalize sales of their flagship laptop."
To eat the flesh of another individual of the same species.
"In extreme scarcity, certain insects will cannibalize smaller members of their own colony."
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Formed in the early 20th century from 'cannibal' plus the verbal suffix '-ize'. The root 'cannibal' comes from Spanish 'caníbal', a variant of 'Caribal', recorded by Christopher Columbus from the indigenous Arawakan name for the Carib people of the West Indies.