eradicate

American  

[ih-rad-i-keyt] / ɪˈræd ɪˌkeɪt /

verb (used with object)

eradicated, eradicating

1. to remove or destroy utterly; extirpate.

   to eradicate smallpox throughout the world.

   Synonyms:

   annihilate, exterminate, uproot, obliterate

2. to erase by rubbing or by means of a chemical solvent.

   to eradicate a spot.

3. to pull up by the roots.

   to eradicate weeds.

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eradicate British  

/ ɪˈrædɪˌkeɪt /

verb

1. to obliterate; stamp out

2. to pull or tear up by the roots

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Related Words

See abolish.

Other Word Forms

• eradicable adjective
• eradicably adverb
• eradicant adjective
• eradication noun
• eradicative adjective
• eradicator noun
• noneradicative adjective
• uneradicated adjective
• uneradicative adjective

Etymology

Origin of eradicate

First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin ērādīcātus “rooted out” (past participle of ērādīcāre ), equivalent to ē- e- ¹ + rādīc- (stem of rādīx ) root ¹ + -ātus -ate ¹

Explanation

To eradicate something is to get rid of it, to destroy it, and to kiss it goodbye. Eradicate is from the Latin word eradicare meaning "to root out." When you yank that weed up by the roots, it has been eradicated; it's not coming back. Eradicate often means to kill a bunch of somethings, like what you want the poison to do to the roach family and their extended relatives living in your house, and what we thought we did to bedbugs. You can also eradicate corruption, poverty, or diseases. Although there are all kinds of things to get rid of, we usually want to only eradicate the bad things.

Example Sentences

“And, at the same time, to eradicate this crime. There should be no more disappeared in Mexico.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 6, 2026

“Our vision is ultimately to be in every school in the nation and to eradicate mass shootings,” Marston said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 5, 2026

The plan is part of the mayor's strategy to eradicate death and serious injury from London's roads by 2041.

From BBC • Mar. 13, 2026

The WHO helped eradicate smallpox, established a framework that led to a dramatic worldwide reduction in tobacco use and helped control numerous pandemics, from Ebola to mpox to Zika.

From Salon • Feb. 28, 2026

Prejudices, it is well known, are most difficult to eradicate from the heart whose soil has never been loosened or fertilised by education: they grow there, firm as weeds among stones.

From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë

Related Words

• abolish
• annihilate
• eliminate
• erase
• expunge
• exterminate
• extinguish
• stamp out
• uproot
• weed out
• wipe out