obliterate

oblit·er·ate

transitive verb \ə-ˈbli-tə-ˌrāt, ō-\

oblit·er·at·edoblit·er·at·ing

Definition of OBLITERATE

1

a : to remove utterly from recognition or memory

b : to remove from existence : destroy utterly all trace, indication, or significance of

c : to cause to disappear (as a bodily part or a scar) or collapse (as a duct conveying body fluid) : remove 4 <a blood vessel obliterated by inflammation>

2

: to make undecipherable or imperceptible by obscuring or wearing away

3

: cancel 4

— oblit·er·a·tion \-ˌbli-tə-ˈrā-shən\ noun

— oblit·er·a·tor \-ˈbli-tə-ˌrā-tər\ noun

Examples of OBLITERATE

1. <in a stroke, the March snowstorm obliterated our hopes for an early spring>

Origin of OBLITERATE

Latin oblitteratus, past participle of oblitterare, from ob- ob- + littera letter

First Known Use: 1600

Related to OBLITERATE

Synonyms

abolish, black out, blot out, cancel, clean (up), efface, eradicate, erase, expunge, exterminate, extirpate, liquidate, annihilate, root (out), rub out, snuff (out), stamp (out), sweep (away), wipe out

Related Words

decimate, demolish, destroy, devastate, ravage; dismantle, flatten, mow (down), raze, tear down; ruin, total, waste, wreck; blast, blow up, dash, dynamite, smash; atomize, consume, devour, dissolve, fragment, powder, pulverize, shatter, splinter; doom, finish, kill, kill off, terminate, zap; cancel, cut, discard, ditch, eject, excise, expel, jettison, oust, throw out

Near Antonyms

conserve, preserve, protect, save; build, construct, create, fabricate, fashion, forge, form, frame, make, manufacture, shape; fix, mend, patch, rebuild, recondition, reconstruct, renew, renovate, repair, restore, revamp

Rhymes with OBLITERATE

abbreviate, abominate, accelerate, accentuate, accommodate, acculturate, accumulate, adjudicate, adulterate, affiliate, agglomerate, alienate, alleviate, alliterate, amalgamate, ameliorate, amyl nitrate, annihilate, annunciate, anticipate, apostolate, appreciate, appropriate, approximate, arpeggiate, articulate, asphyxiate, assassinate, asseverate, assimilate, associate, at any rate, attenuate, authenticate, barbiturate, bicarbonate, calumniate, capacitate, capitulate, catholicate, certificate, coagulate, coelenterate, collaborate, commemorate, commiserate, communicate, compassionate, concatenate, conciliate, confabulate, confederate, conglomerate, congratulate, consolidate, contaminate, cooperate, coordinate, corroborate, deactivate, debilitate, decapitate, decelerate, decerebrate, deconcentrate, deconsecrate, decorticate, decrepitate, de-escalate, defibrinate, defoliate, degenerate, deliberate, delineate, demodulate, denominate, depopulate, depreciate, deracinate, deregulate, desegregate, desiderate, detoxicate, devaluate, diaconate, dilapidate, discriminate, disintegrate, disseminate, dissimulate, dissociate, domesticate, effectuate, ejaculate, elaborate, electroplate, eliminate, elucidate, emaciate, emancipate, emasculate, encapsulate, enumerate, enunciate, episcopate, equivocate, eradicate, etiolate, evacuate, evaluate, evaporate, eventuate, eviscerate, exacerbate, exaggerate, exasperate, excited state, excogitate, excoriate, exfoliate, exhilarate, exonerate, expatiate, expatriate, expectorate, expostulate, expropriate, extenuate, exterminate, extrapolate, facilitate, felicitate, fish or cut bait, garrison state, gesticulate, habilitate, habituate, hallucinate, humiliate, hydrogenate, hypothecate, illuminate, impersonate, inactivate, inaugurate, incarcerate, incinerate, incorporate, incriminate, indoctrinate, inebriate, infatuate, infuriate, ingratiate, ingurgitate, initiate, inoculate, inseminate, insinuate, instantiate, intercalate, interpolate, interrelate, interrogate, intimidate, intoxicate, invalidate, investigate, invigorate, irradiate, Italianate, Korea Strait, lanceolate, legitimate, luxuriate, mandarinate, manipulate, matriarchate, matriculate, Merthiolate, necessitate, negotiate, noncandidate, officiate, Orange Free State, orientate, originate, oxygenate, participate, particulate, patriarchate, patriciate, perambulate, peregrinate, perpetuate, pontificate, precipitate, predestinate, predominate, prefabricate, premeditate, preponderate, prevaricate, procrastinate, prognosticate, proliferate, propitiate, proportionate, quadruplicate, quintuplicate, reciprocate, recriminate, recuperate, redecorate, reduplicate, reeducate, refrigerate, regenerate, regurgitate, reincarnate, reintegrate, reiterate, rejuvenate, remunerate, repatriate, repudiate, resuscitate, retaliate, reticulate, revaluate, reverberate, scholasticate, second estate, self-flagellate, self-immolate, self-pollinate, seventy-eight, sextuplicate, Singapore Strait, sophisticate, subordinate, substantiate, syllabicate, tergiversate, transliterate, triangulate, vanity plate, variegate, vaticinate, vituperate, vociferate

oblit·er·ate

transitive verb \ə-ˈblit-ə-ˌrāt, ō-\   (Medical Dictionary)

oblit·er·at·edoblit·er·at·ing

Medical Definition of OBLITERATE

: to cause to disappear (as a bodily part or a scar) or collapse (as a duct conveying body fluid) <a blood vessel obliterated by inflammation>

—oblit·er·a·tion \-ˌblit-ə-ˈrā-shən\ noun