mindwipe

English

Etymology

From mind +‎ wipe.

Verb

mindwipe (third-person singular simple present mindwipes, present participle mindwiping, simple past and past participle mindwiped)

1. (transitive, science fiction) To erase the memories and personality, while still leaving an intact, living brain and body. This is frequently portrayed as a form of capital punishment, which leaves a viable body into which a different personality or mind can be uploaded.
   • 2001, Jeffrey A Carver, James A Carver, Eternity's End:

     Whether they were mindwiped upon their return to base, or simply terminated like useless equipment, Deutsch never knew.

   • 2006, Jeffery Klaehn, Inside the World of Comic Books:

     In Adventures of Superman #636, Superman told Wonder Woman and Batman about how the League had mindwiped Dr. Light...

Synonyms

• brainwipe
• erase
• deprogram

Noun

mindwipe (plural mindwipes)

1. (science fiction) The act of mindwiping.
   • 2009, Andrew Terjesen, “Dirty Hands and Dirty Minds: The Ethics of Mind Reading and Mindwriting”, in X-Men and Philosophy:

     The mindwipe of Magneto is a necessary action and it is also a wrong one, but it appears to be the only way to save the human population from extinction.