snuff out

1. Extinguish, put a sudden end to, as in Three young lives were snuffed out in that automobile accident . This usage alludes to snuff in the sense of “put out a candle by pinching the wick,” an area itself called snuff from the late 1300s on. [Mid-1800s]

2. Kill, murder, as in If he told the police, the gang would snuff him out . [ Slang ; first half of 1900s]

3. Also, snuff it . Die or be killed, as in He looked very ill indeed, as though he might snuff out any day , or Grandpa just snuffed it . [ Slang ; second half of 1800s]

Example Sentences

A sharp increase in mortgage rates in 2022 snuffed out what had been a housing boom.

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"For a young girl to die in that way, her life snuffed out at the age of 15, it's just too sad for words."

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With Frankenstein, he worries he’ll jinx the monster by talking too much about him, snuffing out the ineffable thing that he says fueled his performance.

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Kim Kardashian and Kris Jenner are taking legal action to snuff out accusations that they are the subjects of a federal criminal racketeering investigation — claims publicized by the former’s ex-boyfriend Ray J.

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It’s hard to snuff out misinformation when the nation’s health services administration specializes in it.

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