extinction

American  

[ik-stingk-shuhn] / ɪkˈstɪŋk ʃən /

noun

• extinctions
  plural

1. the act of extinguishing.

2. the fact or condition of being extinguished or extinct.

3. suppression; abolition; annihilation.

   the extinction of an army.

4. Biology. the act or process of becoming extinct; a coming to an end or dying out.

   the extinction of a species.

5. Psychology. the reduction or loss of a conditioned response as a result of the absence or withdrawal of reinforcement.

6. Astronomy. the diminution in the intensity of starlight caused by absorption as it passes through the earth's atmosphere or through interstellar dust.

7. Crystallography, Optics. the darkness that results from rotation of a thin section to an angle extinction angle at which plane-polarized light is absorbed by the polarizer.

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extinction British  

/ ɪkˈstɪŋkʃən /

noun

1. the act of making extinct or the state of being extinct

2. the act of extinguishing or the state of being extinguished

3. complete destruction; annihilation

4. physics reduction of the intensity of radiation as a result of absorption or scattering by matter

5. astronomy the dimming of light from a celestial body as it passes through an absorbing or scattering medium, such as the earth's atmosphere or interstellar dust

6. psychol a process in which the frequency or intensity of a learned response is decreased as a result of reinforcement being withdrawn Compare habituation

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extinction Scientific  

/ ĭk-stĭngk′shən /

1. The fact of being extinct or the process of becoming extinct.

2. See more at background extinction mass extinction

3. A progressive decrease in the strength of a conditioned response, often resulting in its elimination, because of withdrawal of a specific stimulus.

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extinction Cultural  

1. The disappearance of a species from the Earth.

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Discover More

The fossil record tells us that 99.9 percent of all species that ever lived are now extinct.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonextinction
  noun
• preextinction
  noun
• self-extinction
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• extinctions
  plural

Etymology

Origin of extinction

1375–1425; late Middle English extinccio ( u ) n < Latin ex ( s ) tinctiōn- (stem of ex ( s ) tinctiō ). See extinct, -ion

Explanation

Extinction is when all members of a particular group die. Most often, we use it to discuss animal species. Many fear that the tiger is headed for extinction because of development and hunting. People are still trying to figure out what caused the extinction of the dinosaurs: many think it was because of an asteroid. When people cut down rain forests, it can lead to the extinction of many species. Although extinction can be natural or unintended, the word can also mean forced, planned killing. Many people refer to the Holocaust as Hitler's attempt to bring about the extinction of the Jews. Languages also face extinction when no one speaks them anymore.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

extinction extinctions

After being hunted to extinction a century ago, gray wolves are continuing their remarkable comeback story in California, with state wildlife officials reporting a modern record number of the apex predators in 2025.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 1, 2026

Road deaths can kill nearly a third of a hedgehog population and push smaller communities towards extinction, a new study has shown.

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

"Bulldozers on the beaches have already damaged the nesting sites of loggerhead turtles, which are threatened with extinction," Olsi Nika, a marine biologist who heads the NGO EcoAlbania, told AFP.

From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026

The rapid rise of ferns during the main extinction interval was likely driven by several connected forces, including deforestation, soil erosion, intense greenhouse warming, and repeated wildfires.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 22, 2026

On other recently discovered islands where protective measures did not go into effect quickly, exterminations did indeed result: one such victim, the dodo of Mauritius, has become virtually a symbol for extinction.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

"We know that invasive species and climate are individually associated with freshwater fish extinctions," said Westley, a co-author of the study.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 25, 2026

Climate change, species extinctions, and widespread pollution are all linked to the ways human societies have expanded and intensified their use of natural resources.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 19, 2026

Kevin said it was much more likely for extinctions to happen in localised areas, something that has already happened.

From BBC ● Apr. 11, 2026

The Sinsk event is not considered among the best-known "big five" mass extinctions in our planet's history.

From Barron's ● Jan. 28, 2026

Those extinctions eliminated all the large wild animals that might otherwise have been candidates for domestication, and left native Australians and New Guineans with not a single native domestic animal.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

Related Words

• annihilation
• destruction
• elimination
• obsolescence