uproot

verb

up·​root (ˌ)əp-ˈrüt  -ˈru̇t 

uprooted; uprooting; uproots

transitive verb

1

: to remove as if by pulling up

striving to uproot poverty

2

: to pull up by the roots

Many trees were uprooted by the storm.

3

: to displace from a country or traditional habitat

Taking the job would mean uprooting my family.

uprootedness noun

uprooter noun

Synonyms of uproot

• pry
• pull
• yank
• extract
• pluck

Choose the Right Synonym for 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

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 on the Web

Critics have warned that such an imposition will spark capital flight as wealthy people decide to simply uproot, as Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin have already started to do. —Tristan Bove, Fortune, 27 Jan. 2026

Producers of cognac are cutting staff and uprooting vines as sales go down the drain. —Suzanne Lynch, Bloomberg, 27 Jan. 2026

While the facility includes features for children – such as a gym, a library, and classrooms – attorneys and advocates have reported poor conditions and concerns over children getting uprooted from their daily routines and held in a detention center to no fault of their own. —Holly Yan, CNN Money, 23 Jan. 2026

The six-part thriller follows John (Lincoln) who uproots his family and moves from London to the small Scottish village of Coldwater, following a violent incident at a playground. —Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1620, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for uproot

• acute
• aleut
• astute
• beetroot
• breadfruit
• cheroot
• commute
• compute
• confute
• dilute
• dispute
• elute

Kids Definition

uproot

verb

up·​root (ˌ)ə-ˈprüt  -ˈpru̇t 

: to remove by or as if by pulling up by the roots

uproot a vine

families uprooted by war