root out
verb
rooted out; rooting out; roots out
1
: to find and remove (something or someone)
The mayor was determined to root out corruption in city government.
2
: to find (something or someone) after searching for a long time
He finally rooted out the cause of the problem.
Examples of root out in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Reduce spending, root out fraud and waste and actually hold agencies accountable.
—
Linh Tat, Oc Register, 4 May 2026
Green party leader Zack Polanski has made rooting out the company a rallying call.
—The Week Uk, TheWeek, 3 May 2026
The White House last month announced that Vice President JD Vance will spearhead an effort to root out Medicaid fraud.
—Editorial, Boston Herald, 30 Apr. 2026
No one’s yet discovered how to root out the source of subtle cyberattacks, like in the latter example, with 100 percent accuracy.
—Evan Johnson, IEEE Spectrum, 30 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for root out
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Linh Tat, Oc Register, 4 May 2026
Green party leader Zack Polanski has made rooting out the company a rallying call.
—The Week Uk, TheWeek, 3 May 2026
The White House last month announced that Vice President JD Vance will spearhead an effort to root out Medicaid fraud.
—Editorial, Boston Herald, 30 Apr. 2026
No one’s yet discovered how to root out the source of subtle cyberattacks, like in the latter example, with 100 percent accuracy.
—Evan Johnson, IEEE Spectrum, 30 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for root out
Cite this Entry
“Root out.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/root%20out. Accessed 9 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
