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Synonyms

exterminate

American  
[ik-stur-muh-neyt] / ɪkˈstɜr məˌneɪt /

verb (used with object)

exterminated, exterminating

  1. to get rid of by destroying; destroy totally; extirpate.

    to exterminate an enemy; to exterminate insects.
    Synonyms:
    eliminate, annihilate, abolish, eradicate
exterminate British  
/ ɪkˈstɜːmɪˌneɪt /

verb

  1. (tr) to destroy (living things, esp pests or vermin) completely; annihilate; eliminate

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • exterminable adjective
  • extermination noun
  • exterminative adjective
  • exterminator noun
  • nonextermination noun
  • self-extermination noun
  • unexterminable adjective
  • unexterminated adjective

Etymology

Origin of exterminate

1535–45; < Latin exterminātus, past participle of extermināre to extermine; -ate 1

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.

She appears to tell Epstein that "the British press is ready to exterminate me" and that the Palace is "not equipped to deal with all of this huge wave of negativity".

From BBC • Feb. 3, 2026

In 17th century Ireland, Robyn Goodfellowe is an apprentice hunter who follows her father when he’s called in to exterminate wolves.

From Salon • Dec. 24, 2025

Mr. Biden will travel to Capitol Hill on Tuesday to deliver the keynote address of the Holocaust museum’s yearly event and remember the Nazi effort to exterminate the Jewish people in Europe.

From New York Times • May 1, 2024

After surviving Order 66 — Emperor Palpatine’s plan to exterminate all Jedi — she went into hiding.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 29, 2023

We human beings now have the power to exterminate ourselves; this seems to be the entire sum of our achievement.

From "The Fire Next Time" by James Baldwin

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.