extinguish

[ik-sting-gwish]

verb (used with object)

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

   to extinguish a candle.

   Synonyms: smother, quench
   Antonyms: ignite, light

2. to put an end to or bring to an end; wipe out of existence; annihilate.

   to extinguish hope.

3. to obscure or eclipse, as by superior brilliance.

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

extinguish

/ ɪkˈstɪŋɡwɪʃ /

verb

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

2. to remove or destroy entirely; annihilate

3. archaic,  to eclipse or obscure by or as if by superior brilliance

4. law to discharge (a debt)

Other Word Forms

• extinguishable adjective
• extinguishment noun
• nonextinguishable adjective
• nonextinguished adjective
• preextinguish verb (used with object)
• preextinguishment noun
• self-extinguishing adjective
• unextinguishable adjective
• unextinguished adjective
• extinguisher noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of extinguish¹

1535–45; < Latin ex ( s ) tingu ( ere ) ( ex- ex- ¹ + stinguere to quench) + -ish ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of extinguish¹

C16: from Latin exstinguere, from stinguere to quench

Example Sentences

After the fire was extinguished, scorch marks can be seen rising from the shop's doors and windows, one of which appears completely destroyed.

Read more on BBC

But it was only with an arson arrest this month that federal investigators officially declared the deadly conflagration a holdover fire — the continuation of the Lachman fire that was seemingly extinguished.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

At the robot’s first deployment, a fire at a recycling facility, the blaze was under control but the labor-intensive work of extinguishing hot spots remained.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

But LSU fans simply couldn’t stomach yet another year that began with championship hopes, only to see them extinguished before Halloween.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"The light in our family has been extinguished... the deepest wound is the impact on the children, they had their innocence stolen."

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• abate 
• annihilate 
• destroy 
• eliminate 
• eradicate 
• erase 
• exterminate 
• obliterate 
• quell 
• stamp out 
• suppress 
• wipe out