extinguish

[ ik-sting-gwish ]

/ ɪkˈstɪŋ gwɪʃ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR extinguish ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to put out (a fire, light, etc.); put out the flame of (something burning or lighted): to extinguish a candle.

to put an end to or bring to an end; wipe out of existence; annihilate: to extinguish hope.

to obscure or eclipse, as by superior brilliance.

Law. to discharge (a debt), as by payment.

Nearby words

extima, extinct, extinction, extinctive, extine, extinguish, extinguishant, extinguisher, extirpate, extirpation, extn.

Origin of extinguish

1535–45; < Latin ex(s)tingu(ere) (ex- ex-¹ + stinguere to quench) + -ish²

SYNONYMS FOR extinguish

1 quench, smother, snuff out, blow out.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR extinguish ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR extinguish

1 light, ignite.

SEE MORE ANTONYMS FOR extinguish ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

ex·tin·guish·a·ble, adjectiveex·tin·guish·ment, nounnon·ex·tin·guish·a·ble, adjectivenon·ex·tin·guished, adjective

pre·ex·tin·guish, verb (used with object)pre·ex·tin·guish·ment, nounself-ex·tin·guish·ing, adjectiveun·ex·tin·guish·a·ble, adjectiveun·ex·tin·guished, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for extinguish

These habits are likely to be hard to extinguish entirely.
Why Are Millennials Unfriending Organized Religion?|Vlad Chituc|November 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I like the taste of it as well once you extinguish the flame.
James McAvoy on ‘Filth,’ His Wild Bachelor Party, and BB Gun Fights with Jennifer Lawrence|Marlow Stern|May 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They remembered that the escaped owner had only recently tried to extinguish their capital with blood.
Where in the World Is Yanukovych?|Oleg Shynkarenko|February 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Amid the sound of screaming and the smell of burning, he tried to extinguish the fire with prayer mats.
Surviving Syria’s Incendiary Bomb Attacks|Paul Adrian Raymond|December 11, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Q: His healthcare reform will extinguish all freedom and literally sentence our seniors to death.
David Frum: Welcome to My World|David Frum|November 2, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The English horse arrived just in time to extinguish the flames.
The History of England from the Accession of James II.|Thomas Babington Macaulay
The bruised reed he shall not break: and smoking flax he shall not extinguish: till he send forth judgment unto victory.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
Under other circumstances we might have attempted to extinguish it; as it was, I ran to tell Uncle Jeff what had occurred.
In the Rocky Mountains|W. H. G. Kingston
Local Option, licence granted to the inhabitants of a district to extinguish or reduce the sale of intoxicants in their midst.
The Nuttall Encyclopaedia|Edited by Rev. James Wood
The rubber should not be allowed to form a bend hanging down, or water vapour, &c., may condense and extinguish the flame.
Acetylene, The Principles Of Its Generation And Use|F. H. Leeds

British Dictionary definitions for extinguish

extinguish

/ (ɪkˈstɪŋɡwɪʃ) /

verb (tr)

to put out or quench (a light, flames, etc)

to remove or destroy entirely; annihilate

archaic to eclipse or obscure by or as if by superior brilliance

law to discharge (a debt)

Derived Forms

extinguishable, adjectiveextinguisher, nounextinguishment, noun

Word Origin for extinguish

C16: from Latin exstinguere, from stinguere to quench

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

extinguish

verb (used with object)

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of extinguish

SYNONYMS FOR extinguish

ANTONYMS FOR extinguish

Related forms

Examples from the Web for extinguish

British Dictionary definitions for extinguish

extinguish

verb (tr)

Derived Forms

Word Origin for extinguish

Medicine definitions for extinguish

extinguish

n.