obliterate

[uh-blit-uh-reyt]

verb (used with object), ob·lit·er·at·ed, ob·lit·er·at·ing.

to remove or destroy all traces of; do away with; destroy completely.
to blot out or render undecipherable (writing, marks, etc.); efface.

Origin of obliterate

1590–1600; < Latin oblitterātus (past participle of oblitterāre, efface, cause to be forgotten), equivalent to ob- ob- + litter(a) letter¹ + -ātus -ate¹

Related formsob·lit·er·a·ble

[uh-blit-er-uh-buhl] /əˈblɪt ər ə bəl/, adjectiveo·blit·er·a·tor, nounhalf-ob·lit·er·at·ed, adjectiveun·ob·lit·er·at·ed, adjective

Synonyms for obliterate

2. expunge.

Synonym study

2. See cancel.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

British Dictionary definitions for obliterator

obliterate

verb

(tr) to destroy every trace of; wipe out completely

Derived Formsobliteration, nounobliterative, adjectiveobliterator, noun

Word Origin for obliterate

C16: from Latin oblitterāre to erase, from ob- out + littera letter

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

Word Origin and History for obliterator

obliterate

c.1600, from Latin obliteratus, past participle of obliterare "cause to disappear, blot out, erase, efface," figuratively "cause to be forgotten," from ob "against" (see ob-) + littera (also litera) "letter, script" (see letter (n.)); abstracted from phrase literas scribere "write across letters, strike out letters." Related: Obliterated; obliterating.

obliterator in Medicine

obliterate

[ə-blĭt′ə-rāt′, ō-blĭt′-]

To remove an organ or another body part completely, as by surgery, disease, or radiation.
To blot out, especially through filling of a natural space by fibrosis or inflammation.

Related formso•blit′er•a′tion n.