remove
Americanverb (used with object)
-
removes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
removed,
past participle, past
-
removing
present participle
-
to move from a place or position; take away or off.
to remove the napkins from the table.
- Synonyms:
- dislodge
- Antonyms:
- leave
-
to take off or shed (an article of clothing).
to remove one's jacket.
-
to move or shift to another place or position; transfer.
She removed the painting to another wall.
-
to put out; send away.
to remove a tenant.
-
to dismiss or force from a position or office; discharge.
They removed him for embezzling.
-
to take away, withdraw, or eliminate.
to remove the threat of danger.
-
to get rid of; do away with; put an end to.
to remove a stain;
to remove the source of disease.
-
to kill; assassinate.
- Synonyms:
- murder
verb (used without object)
-
removes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
removed,
past participle, past
-
removing
present participle
-
to move from one place to another, especially to another locality or residence.
We remove to Newport early in July.
- Antonyms:
- remain
-
to go away; depart; disappear.
noun
-
the act of removing.
-
a removal from one place, as of residence, to another.
-
the distance by which one person, place, or thing is separated from another.
to see something at a remove.
-
a mental distance from the reality of something as a result of psychological detachment or lack of experience.
to criticize something at a remove.
-
a degree of difference, as that due to descent, transmission, etc..
a folk survival, at many removes, of a druidic rite.
-
a step or degree, as in a graded scale.
-
British. a promotion of a pupil to a higher class or division at school.
verb
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to take away and place elsewhere
-
to displace (someone) from office; dismiss
-
to do away with (a grievance, cause of anxiety, etc); abolish
-
to cause (dirt, stains, or anything unwanted) to disappear; get rid of
-
euphemistic to assassinate; kill
-
formal (intr) to change the location of one's home or place of business
the publishers have removed to Mayfair
noun
-
the act of removing, esp (formal) a removal of one's residence or place of work
-
the degree of difference separating one person, thing, or condition from another
only one remove from madness
-
(in certain schools) a class or form, esp one for children of about 14 years, designed to introduce them to the greater responsibilities of a more senior position in the school
-
(at a formal dinner, formerly) a dish to be changed while the rest of the course remains on the table
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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removabilitynoun
-
removernoun
-
preremoveverb (used with object)
-
removableadjective
-
removablyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
removesimple
-
removessimple
-
have removedperfect
-
has removedperfect
-
am removingprogressive
-
are removingprogressive
-
is removingprogressive
-
have been removingperfect progressive
-
has been removingperfect progressive
Past
-
removedsimple
-
had removedperfect
-
was removingprogressive
-
were removingprogressive
-
had been removingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of remove
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English verb remeven, remefen, remoeven, from Old French remouvoir, from Latin removēre; see re-, move
Explanation
You can remove your name from a list, remove a stain from a t-shirt, or remove old furniture from your house. Whatever it is, when you remove something, you take it somewhere else or get rid of it completely. The verb remove usually means taking something off or getting rid of something. For example, when you take off your coat, you remove it, or when you remove a skillet from the heat, you take it off the burner. Remove can apply to people: a law-breaking politician who is removed from office. As a noun remove indicates distance, such as being at one remove from your cousin, getting all his news from his mother.
Vocabulary lists containing remove
"Hitching a Ride"
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Workshop 3, Part 1
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Chapter 13: Manifest Destiny
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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:
The army said it "will continue to operate to remove threats while remaining committed to the ceasefire agreement".
From Barron's ● Sep. 7, 2026
The acknowledgment comes after Reuters reported that Kennedy directed CDC Director Erica Schwartz to remove references to two Pennsylvania deaths from the agency’s national measles count after questioning whether the disease contributed to them.
From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026
Sullivan declined to remove the juror, saying he did not want to favor one side over the other, but agreed to reinstruct the jurors on their obligation to follow the law.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
Emergency treatments such as clot-dissolving drugs and procedures that physically remove the clot can restore circulation and help save brain tissue that is still viable.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 4, 2026
All I had to do was remove its legs and clean and tighten its screws and washers.
From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy
A litter picking group which removes rubbish from a river collected more than 50 bags of rubbish at their latest gathering.
From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2026
That addendum removes a requirement that the unit be owner-occupied and allows the lender to collect rent directly from tenants if Paxton were to default on the loan.
From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2026
When a large company gets added to the S&P 500, the index committee often removes a smaller company.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 4, 2026
"One removes the punishment, the other builds what should be there instead."
From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026
Amidst the panic, she calmly unbuttons her coat and removes it, tossing it with a delicate gesture toward the burning chair.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
When Robinhood rolled out a premium credit card for users this spring, it originally included a complimentary Oura subscription, though the perk was later removed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026
Narbonne is scheduled to appeal this month to have sanctions removed for the playoffs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026
The researchers first removed artificial sources of noise from the data.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 6, 2026
In Harris County, a proposed Flock contract amendment initially included the explicit authorisation to share camera data with federal law enforcement, but this provision was later removed after push-back from campaigners.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
Edward Ashton removed a small hardcover book from within the pile of papers.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
At relatively low levels, including the quantities typically obtained from fruit, gut bacteria appear to be effective at removing sorbitol.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 6, 2026
But the Japanese method involves removing that tainted water and replacing it with a fresh batch.
From Barron's ● Sep. 6, 2026
And, perhaps most importantly, why do we, as a culture, continually stand in the way of our own edification, removing the possibility to understand each other better under the guise of progress?
From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2026
“We are removing layers, simplifying team structures, refining our global location strategy, and focusing our people and investments against the biggest opportunities ahead of us,” Khosrowshahi said in his letter.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
After removing the dirt down to the level of the coffin lid, a section was dug around the base of the coffin so several people could stand next to it.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
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.
