extricate
Americanverb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of extricate
First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin extricātus (past participle of extricāre ), equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + tric(ae) “perplexities” + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
If you need to be untangled, set free or otherwise released from something or someone, you need to be extricated. Extricate is a mixture of the prefix ex, which means "out" or "out of," and the Latin word tricae, which means "hindrances." So to extricate is to get out of what's hindering you. But it's not always so simple. You just try and extricate yourself from the loving death grip of a grandma who hasn't seen you in awhile!
Vocabulary lists containing extricate
Ender's Game
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "E"
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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., "Beyond Vietnam" (1967)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As for what you can do: Extricate yourself!
From New York Times • Feb. 17, 2022
His mission: Extricate from the Kremlin a female double-agent whom he knows.
From Washington Post
Extricate, eks′tri-kāt, v.t. to free from hinderances or perplexities: to disentangle: to set free.—adj.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 2 of 4: E-M) by Various
Extricate the most comely or comical picture of the departed from recesses of recall or from the picture archive.
From Rhyme and Reason; a Compilation of Verses, Rhymes and Senses by Dom
Extricate yourself from the goldsmith's rubbish of it, and look full at the Salutation.
From Mornings in Florence by Ruskin, John
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
