Savagizing

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To partake in violent actions that display extreme cruelty or ferocity
2. Engaging in actions marked by intense harshness and aggressiveness
3. Behaving in a manner that shows intense and ruthless violence

Etymology: "Savagizing" is the present participle of "savagize," a verb formed in English from "savage" and the suffix "-ize." The suffix, borrowed from Greek through Latin and French, turns an adjective or noun into a verb meaning to make or become something, so "savagize" means to make savage, or to behave in a savage way. The base word has a long and complicated past. "Savage" entered English through Old French "salvage," from Latin "silvaticus," meaning "of the woods" or "wild," the same root that gives us "silvan." Over time the sense moved from wild, untamed land to untamed people, and finally to cruelty and brutality, which is the meaning this form carries.