exterminate[verb]Synonyms: destroy, abolish, annihilate, eliminate, eradicate
Related Idioms: do away with, put an end to, put out of the way, wipe off the face of the earth, wipe off the map
Related Words: finish off,
execute,
kill (off)
English Thesaurus: kill, murder, commit manslaughter, assassinate, slay, ... [TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲
ex‧ter‧mi‧nate /ɪkˈstɜːməneɪt, ɪkˈstɜːmɪneɪt $ -ɜːr-/
verb [transitive][
Date: 1500-1600;
Language: Latin;
Origin: past participle of exterminare 'to drive out', from terminus 'edge']
to kill large numbers of people or animals of a particular type so that they no longer exist:
Staff use the poison to exterminate moles and rabbits.—exterminator noun [countable]—extermination /ɪkˌstɜːməˈneɪʃ
ən, ɪkˌstɜːmɪˈneɪʃ
ən $ -ɜːr-/
noun [uncountable and countable]:
the extermination of the indigenous peoples [TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲
kill to make someone die:
The driver and his passenger were killed in the crash. He was killed by rival gang members.murder to deliberately kill someone – used when talking about this as a crime:
He was convicted of murdering his wife.commit manslaughter to kill someone without intending to – used when talking about this as a crime:
The court ruled that the guard had committed manslaughter.assassinate to deliberately kill an important person, especially a politician:
He was part of a plot to assassinate Hitler.slay to kill someone or something in a violent way – used in newspaper reports and also in old stories:
Two teenagers were slain in the shootings. St. George slew the dragon. The king was slain at the battle of Hastings.execute formal (
also put somebody to death) to kill someone as a punishment for a crime:
McVeigh, who killed 168 people in a bombing attack, was executed by lethal injection.eliminate to kill someone in order to prevent them from causing trouble:
a ruthless dictator who eliminated all his rivalstake somebody out informal to kill someone in order to get rid of them, especially an enemy or someone who is causing trouble for you:
US forces used air strikes to take out the enemy positions. One of the other drug dealers may have decided to take him out.bump somebody off humorous informal to kill someone:
He was so irritating I felt like bumping him off myself.do away with somebody informal to kill someone:
The settlers in Jamestown had been done away with, but no one knew how.commit suicide to kill yourself:
He committed suicide after the death of his girlfriend.take your own life formal to kill yourself:
He had taken his own life while he was severely depressed. They believe that it is a sin to take your own life.massacre to kill a large number of people in a violent way:
Thousands of peaceful demonstrators were massacred by the soldiers.slaughter to kill a large number of people in a violent way.
Slaughter is also used about killing animals for food:
The army slaughtered thousands of civilians in an effort to stop the revolt. The pigs were slaughtered on the farm.exterminate to kill large numbers of a particular group, so that they no longer exist:
Hitler’s goal was to exterminate the Jews. [TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲