abolish

play

verb abol·ish \ə-ˈbä-lish\

Definition of abolish

transitive verb
: to end the observance or effect of (something, such as a law) : to completely do away with (something) : annul abolish a law abolish slavery

abolishable

play \-li-shə-bəl\ adjective

abolisher

noun

abolishment

play \-mənt\ noun

See abolish defined for English-language learners

See abolish defined for kids

Examples of abolish in a Sentence

He is in favor of abolishing the death penalty.
the U.S. abolished slavery by constitutional amendment on December 6, 1865

Recent Examples of abolish from the Web

They originally were sentenced to death, but Connecticut abolished capital punishment in 2012.

— dave collins, The Seattle Times, "10 years later, shocking home invasion haunts a quiet suburb," 16 July 2017
Furthermore, the bill ignores a Trump plan to abolish NIH’s widely lauded global health center.

— jocelyn kaiser, Science | AAAS, "House bill gives NIH 3% raise, blocks cuts to overhead payments," 12 July 2017
Sleeping Emily could see that, and abolished the point of stress for me.

— by emily parnell, kansascity.com, "Stumped? Let your mystical dream self come up with the answers," 5 July 2017
Japan will create a low-tariff quota for European cheese and abolish levies over 15 years, while the EU will remove auto tariffs over seven years.

— isabel reynolds, Bloomberg.com, "Abe Flies to Brussels in Bid to Seal Japan-EU Free Trade Deal," 5 July 2017
For some the name change would right a wrong: The park was named for the late U.S. Sen. Stephen A. Douglas — who wanted voters to decide the slavery issue rather than abolish it.

— william lee, chicagotribune.com, "Students: Rename Douglas Park for abolitionist Frederick Douglass," 4 July 2017
Senate Republicans, along with their House counterparts, have repeatedly voted to abolish Obamacare without putting anything in its place, including as recently as 2015.

— the washington post, AL.com, "Republicans consider complete Obamacare appeal, even without replacement," 30 June 2017
If large foundations are a threat to democracy, then, is there a way to reform them short of abolishing them altogether?

— yoni appelbaum, The Atlantic, "Is Big Philanthropy Compatible With Democracy?," 28 June 2017
But that’s because the bill as presented to CBO abolished Obamacare’s individual and employer purchasing mandates without providing any substitute provision to encourage young and healthy people to join or stay in the insurance market.

— ed kilgore, Daily Intelligencer, "CBO Score of Senate Health Bill Is Grim — But Gives McConnell Wiggle Room," 26 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'abolish.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of abolish

Middle English abolysshen, borrowed from Middle French aboliss-, stem of abolir “to abolish,” borrowed from Latin abolēre “to destroy, efface, put an end to,” perhaps formed from abolēscere “to shrivel up, be effaced, fall into disuse,” from ab- ab- + -ol-, medial form of the base of alere “to nourish, bring up” + -ēsc-, inchoative suffix — more at ¹old