Decimation

Decimation originally referred to a punishment in the Roman army where one in every ten soldiers was executed to discipline the group. Today, the term is more broadly used to describe a significant reduction or destruction of a population, group, or resource. For instance, one might say a species was decimated by habitat loss, meaning that its numbers were drastically reduced. In general, decimation conveys a sense of large-scale loss or damage, affecting the integrity or vitality of whatever is being discussed.