uproot

[ uhp-root, -root ]
See synonyms for: uprootuprooteduprooting on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)
  1. to pull out by or as if by the roots: The hurricane uprooted many trees and telephone poles.

  2. to remove violently or tear away from a native place or environment: The industrial revolution uprooted large segments of the rural population.

  1. to destroy or eradicate as if by pulling out roots: The conquerors uprooted many of the Native traditions.

  2. to displace, as from a home or country; tear away, as from customs or a way of life: to uproot a people.

verb (used without object)
  1. to become uprooted.

Origin of uproot

1
First recorded in 1610–20; up- + root2

Other words for uproot

Other words from uproot

  • up·root·ed·ness, noun
  • up·root·er, noun

Words Nearby uproot

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use uproot in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for uproot

uproot

/ (ʌpˈruːt) /


verb(tr)
  1. to pull up by or as if by the roots

  2. to displace (a person or persons) from native or habitual surroundings

  1. to remove or destroy utterly

Derived forms of uproot

  • uprootedness, noun
  • uprooter, noun

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