extricate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
extricates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
extricated,
past participle, past
-
extricating
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
extricatesimple
-
extricatessimple
-
have extricatedperfect
-
has extricatedperfect
-
am extricatingprogressive
-
are extricatingprogressive
-
is extricatingprogressive
-
have been extricatingperfect progressive
-
has been extricatingperfect progressive
Past
-
extricatedsimple
-
had extricatedperfect
-
was extricatingprogressive
-
were extricatingprogressive
-
had been extricatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of extricate
First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin extricātus (past participle of extricāre ), equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + tric(ae) “perplexities” + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
If you need to be untangled, set free or otherwise released from something or someone, you need to be extricated. Extricate is a mixture of the prefix ex, which means "out" or "out of," and the Latin word tricae, which means "hindrances." So to extricate is to get out of what's hindering you. But it's not always so simple. You just try and extricate yourself from the loving death grip of a grandma who hasn't seen you in awhile!
Vocabulary lists containing extricate
Ender's Game
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "E"
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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., "Beyond Vietnam" (1967)
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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.
See Examples For:
Firefighters worked for nearly two hours to extricate the driver, using hydraulic tools to cut into the trapped flatbed’s cab.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
To extricate itself, Unilever eventually transferred to the Israeli licensee the assets needed to sell Ben & Jerry’s ice cream in Israel and its territories—for as long as he desires.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
Meanwhile, despite these woes, I was able to extricate some March Madness picks from the collective wisdom, or otherwise, of the major AI platforms.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 18, 2026
Rocket responded with its “Bully Shield” program, which pays penalties and court fees for any brokers who want to extricate themselves from UWM External link’s contract.
From Barron's ● Jan. 16, 2026
I'm rash in my decisions and I spend half my time trying to extricate myself from situations of my own making.
From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland
“The disposal of the Russian hygiene entity extricates the company from a business that cast a shadow over its first-quarter results,” the analyst said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
He draws her toward him, she extricates herself and gives him a small wave, no hug in sight.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2023
McManus throws ladders, extricates people from car crashes, breaks down doors and conducts search-and-rescue operations.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 13, 2023
When Charlotte extricates herself from a grotesque and all-too-familiar #MeToo encounter, she's then criticized by Leila, one of the only people in her life Charlotte trusts, for not making a bigger scene.
From Salon ● Aug. 4, 2018
The wanderer always extricates himself successfully from the difficulties.
From Hidden Symbolism of Alchemy and the Occult Arts by Smith Ely Jelliffe
Hernan Gil survived nearly eight days trapped beneath the ruins of a partially collapsed building in Venezuela before being extricated Thursday in a dramatic operation involving rescuers from seven countries.
From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026
A massive search and rescue effort extricated one crew member but at least one additional crew member was unaccounted for.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 4, 2026
Their bodies were extricated not by trained rescuers, but by locals who used rudimentary equipment.
From BBC ● Apr. 2, 2025
The man was extricated by Long Beach police, and he along with the driver were taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries to the upper body.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2024
I made an effort not to exhale near Lara as she groggily extricated herself from the sleeping bag.
From "Looking for Alaska" by John Green
The dogs secured outside the room - and her husband wishing he was with them - Bloor began carefully extricating herself.
From BBC ● Jan. 15, 2026
He lets the film pause and breathe, believably extricating Pansy from her pain for just a moment to give her a taste of what reprieve and lightness might look like.
From Salon ● Jan. 10, 2025
Zwirner would not disclose the financial terms of extricating the gallery from that project.
From New York Times ● Jul. 26, 2023
After extricating herself from a toxic ex-boyfriend, Anna decides she’d like to have a child.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2023
From a parent’s point of view, it wasn’t a bad way to raise teenagers—knowing that a set of watchful adults was trailing them at all times, tasked with extricating them from any sort of emergency.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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.
