uproot

verb up·root \ (ˌ)əp-ˈrüt , -ˈru̇t \

Updated on: 13 May 2018

Definition of uproot

transitive verb

1 : to remove as if by pulling up

2 : to pull up by the roots

3 : to displace from a country or traditional habitat

—

uprootedness

noun

—

uprooter

noun

See uproot defined for English-language learners

See uproot defined for kids

Examples of uproot in a Sentence

Many trees were uprooted by the storm.
Will we ever be able to uproot racial prejudice?
Taking the job would mean uprooting my family.

Recent Examples of uproot from the Web

Prizes, which haven’t been decided yet, will be awarded to the teams that properly uproot the most dandelions in five minutes.

— erin hegarty, Naperville Sun, "Dandelion pull at Knoch Park to reward volunteers who uproot the most weeds," 7 May 2018
The battle was three weeks of carnage that left the once-beautiful preserve a scorched ruin, its trees splintered or uprooted.

— chris stirewalt, Fox News, "White House stumbles add up to trouble for GOP," 25 Apr. 2018
In more mountainous zones, uprooted trees lie upside down as if frozen or caught in a free-fall, threatening to slide onto the roads.

— silvia foster-frau, San Antonio Express-News, "In hurricane’s aftermath, Puerto Rico moves from survival to revival," 20 Apr. 2018
For professionals who require state licenses, uprooting your career can be difficult, if not impossible.

— CBS News, "Behind the push to help military spouses find employment," 18 Apr. 2018
After the meeting, Kaczynski said the issue of residency — a requirement voters upheld in the 2016 election — is hard on people who resent uprooting family to comply.

— bill leukhardt, Courant Community, "Berlin Hires Town Manager," 18 Apr. 2018
In 2002 bulldozers began uprooting olive groves and pomegranate trees to make way for a system of fencing and barriers intended to prevent suicide bombers from crossing over from the West Bank.

— lauren etter, Bloomberg.com, "America’s Virtual Border Wall Is a 1,954-Mile-Long Money Pit," 9 Apr. 2018
The violence continues to this day, most notably as part of the fight to permanently uproot ISIS.

— gregory krieg, CNN, "Pardoning Scooter Libby is Trump's swampiest decision," 13 Apr. 2018
Hamas’s promise of a ‘‘Great March of Return’’ has particular resonance in Gaza, where two-thirds of 2 million residents are descendants of refugees, uprooted in the 1948 war over Israel’s creation.

— fares akram, BostonGlobe.com, "Israeli, Hamas leaders dig in on Gaza border clashes," 9 Apr. 2018

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

First Known Use of uproot

circa 1620

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

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uproot Synonyms

Synonyms

extract, prize, pry, pull, root (out), tear (out), wrest, wring, yank;

Near Antonyms

implant, insert, install, instill;

cram, jam, ram, stuff, wedge;

Synonym Discussion of uproot

exterminate, extirpate, eradicate, uproot mean to effect the destruction or abolition of something. exterminate implies complete and immediate extinction by killing off all individuals.

- exterminate cockroaches

extirpate implies extinction of a race, family, species, or sometimes an idea or doctrine by destruction or removal of its means of propagation.

- many species have been extirpated from the area

eradicate implies the driving out or elimination of something that has established itself.

- a campaign to eradicate illiteracy

uproot implies a forcible or violent removal and stresses displacement or dislodgment rather than immediate destruction.

- the war uprooted thousands

UPROOT Defined for English Language Learners

uproot

verb

Definition of uproot for English Language Learners

: to pull (a plant and its root) completely out of the ground
: to remove (something) completely
: to make (someone) leave home and move to a different place

UPROOT Defined for Kids

uproot

verb up·root \ ˌəp-ˈrüt , -ˈru̇t \

Definition of uproot for Students

uprooted; uprooting

1 : to take out by or as if by pulling up by the roots

Many trees were uprooted by the storm.

2 : to take, send, or force away from a country or a traditional home

Taking the job would mean moving and uprooting the family.

Learn More about uproot

See words that rhyme with uproot Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for uproot Spanish Central: Translation of uproot Nglish: Translation of uproot for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of uproot for Arabic speakers

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uproot

Definition of uproot

uprootedness

uprooter

Examples of uproot in a Sentence

Recent Examples of uproot from the Web

First Known Use of uproot

uproot Synonyms

Synonyms

Near Antonyms

Related Words

Synonym Discussion of uproot

UPROOT Defined for English Language Learners

uproot

Definition of uproot for English Language Learners

UPROOT Defined for Kids

uproot

Definition of uproot for Students

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