remove

American  

[ri-moov] / rɪˈmuv /

verb (used with object)

• removes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• removed,
  past participle,  past
• removing
  present participle

1. to move from a place or position; take away or off.

   to remove the napkins from the table.

   Synonyms:

   dislodge

   Antonyms:

   leave

2. to take off or shed (an article of clothing).

   to remove one's jacket.

3. to move or shift to another place or position; transfer.

   She removed the painting to another wall.

   Synonyms:

   transport, displace

4. to put out; send away.

   to remove a tenant.

5. to dismiss or force from a position or office; discharge.

   They removed him for embezzling.

6. to take away, withdraw, or eliminate.

   to remove the threat of danger.

7. to get rid of; do away with; put an end to.

   to remove a stain;

   to remove the source of disease.

8. to kill; assassinate.

   Synonyms:

   murder

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verb (used without object)

• removes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• removed,
  past participle,  past
• removing
  present participle

1. to move from one place to another, especially to another locality or residence.

   We remove to Newport early in July.

   Antonyms:

   remain

2. to go away; depart; disappear.

noun

1. the act of removing.

2. a removal from one place, as of residence, to another.

3. the distance by which one person, place, or thing is separated from another.

   to see something at a remove.

4. a mental distance from the reality of something as a result of psychological detachment or lack of experience.

   to criticize something at a remove.

5. a degree of difference, as that due to descent, transmission, etc..

   a folk survival, at many removes, of a druidic rite.

6. a step or degree, as in a graded scale.

7. British. a promotion of a pupil to a higher class or division at school.

remove British  

/ rɪˈmuːv /

verb

1. to take away and place elsewhere

2. to displace (someone) from office; dismiss

3. to do away with (a grievance, cause of anxiety, etc); abolish

4. to cause (dirt, stains, or anything unwanted) to disappear; get rid of

5. euphemistic to assassinate; kill

6. formal (intr) to change the location of one's home or place of business

   the publishers have removed to Mayfair

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noun

1. the act of removing, esp (formal) a removal of one's residence or place of work

2. the degree of difference separating one person, thing, or condition from another

   only one remove from madness

3. (in certain schools) a class or form, esp one for children of about 14 years, designed to introduce them to the greater responsibilities of a more senior position in the school

4. (at a formal dinner, formerly) a dish to be changed while the rest of the course remains on the table

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• removability
  noun
• remover
  noun
• preremove
  verb (used with object)
• removable
  adjective
• removably
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Participles

• removing
  present
• removed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• remove
  simple
• removes
  simple
• have removed
  perfect
• has removed
  perfect
• am removing
  progressive
• are removing
  progressive
• is removing
  progressive
• have been removing
  perfect progressive
• has been removing
  perfect progressive

Past

• removed
  simple
• had removed
  perfect
• was removing
  progressive
• were removing
  progressive
• had been removing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will remove
  simple
• will have removed
  perfect
• will be removing
  progressive
• will have been removing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of remove

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English verb remeven, remefen, remoeven, from Old French remouvoir, from Latin removēre; see re-, move

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Explanation

You can remove your name from a list, remove a stain from a t-shirt, or remove old furniture from your house. Whatever it is, when you remove something, you take it somewhere else or get rid of it completely. The verb remove usually means taking something off or getting rid of something. For example, when you take off your coat, you remove it, or when you remove a skillet from the heat, you take it off the burner. Remove can apply to people: a law-breaking politician who is removed from office. As a noun remove indicates distance, such as being at one remove from your cousin, getting all his news from his mother.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

remove removes removed removing

"We can't remove all the obstacles, but we can give them the skills to manage," she says.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

Exercise can help bring this system back into balance, allowing muscle cells to remove damaged proteins and maintain healthy tissue.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026

“I doubt that we could remove every cultural tendency from a model, because language and culture are deeply intertwined,” Lu told me.

From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026

Seham, 12, said she felt "afraid" to remove her headscarf at school "because I'd worn it for two years and it felt like a part of me".

From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026

Before he left, Khedive Ismail made an agreement with the Americans allowing them to remove Cleo and take it to the United States.

From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman

This process normally removes apoptotic cells, but when it is impaired, dead cellular material can accumulate and continue triggering inflammatory signals.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 10, 2026

He believes that the elimination of a second simultaneous vote for a replacement removes “the political incentive for gamesmanship around recalls.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

The amended merger agreement also removes a requirement that ON Semiconductor appoints a member of Synaptics’ board of directors to its own board.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

"While extending the zone removes the need for movement licences, it does not change our long-term approach to tackling this disease," he said.

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

Jack removes his baseball cap with a flick of his wrist, using its bill to scratch the top of his head.

From "The Sea in Winter" by Christine Day

The moves have removed risk from the balance sheet “and transformed EchoStar into an investment company with meaningful further opportunities to unlock value,” he wrote in a note to clients on Friday while relaunching J.P.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026

He has also claimed he was illegally removed from Libya to stand trial in the United States after "a cloak and dagger operation conducted in the dead of night".

From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026

The Louvre has reopened its Apollo Gallery, but all the remaining jewelry in it has been removed, resulting in an empty, 17th-century ceremonial gallery.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

After the procedure at Rome's Gemelli hospital on Tuesday, the Vatican revealed that the growth was cancerous and that surgeons had removed part of his right lung.

From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026

Chase gently removed her headlamp and handed it to Rashawn.

From "Storm Runners" by Roland Smith

That includes removing obstacles to the commercial deployment of trucks, he added.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2026

Claire says that removing the presumption puts children at the front of decision-making - which would keep them safer.

From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026

But Jacinto said Stelco is again idling Canadian capacity, removing Stelco supply from the U.S. and diverting production.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

"This case suggests that removing amyloid early may help limit the changes that ultimately damage brain cells. Ongoing trials will help determine whether starting treatment before symptoms begin can provide even greater benefit."

From Science Daily ● Oct. 15, 2026

Allun brushed at his coat, as though removing the dried mud that clung there was all that was important to him.

From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda

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Related Words

• abolish
• clear away
• cut out
• delete
• discard
• discharge
• dismiss
• eliminate
• erase
• evacuate
• expel
• extract
• get rid of
• oust
• pull out
• raise
• separate
• ship
• take out
• transfer

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