ἀποτέμνειν τὴν κεφαλήν
From LSJ
κατὰ τὸν δεύτερον, φασί, πλοῦν τὰ ἐλάχιστα ληπτέον τῶν κακῶν → we must as second best, as people say, take the least of the evils
Greek > English (Woodhouse)
behead, decapitate, ax, bring to the block, chop off one's head, cut off the head, cut the head off, decollate, guillotine
