as in destruction
the state or fact of being rendered nonexistent, physically unsound, or useless
the virtual extermination of the native tribes by the colonizers
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of extermination
Besides extermination, these companies also may be able to assist with locating and sealing entry points or making other recommendations for exclusion.
—
Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 1 Oct. 2025
An extermination of the brutes in the Middle East, presided over by Obama’s successors, has been followed by a swift cancellation by Trumpian decree of the postracial age.
—Pankaj Mishra, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
But the spread of agriculture and extermination of prairie dogs have sharply reduced the owl’s western populations.
—Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
The four women, three of whom were Jewish, were all inmates of Auschwitz, the Nazis’ most notorious extermination camp outside the southern Polish city of Oświęcim.
—Literary Hub, 17 Sep. 2025
Szames’ likeness and story are part of the RUTH exhibition, which opened in January and includes life-size cutouts and keepsakes of San Diego County survivors of the Nazi extermination campaign against European Jews.
—Ashley MacKin Solomon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Sep. 2025
Yet this divide-and-conquer approach, combined with the relentless attacks on civilians, has also entrenched resistance among ordinary Gazans, who now perceive Israel as undertaking a war of extermination.
—Leila Seurat, Foreign Affairs, 26 Aug. 2025
Palestinians and Israeli Jews also came to regard the other side’s actions as fulfillments of their own national nightmares, ethnic cleansing for one and extermination for the other.
—Hussein Agha, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2025
The Holocaust led to the extermination of 6 million Jews — so recent that some who lived it are still living.
—Seth Lavin, Chicago Tribune, 6 Aug. 2025
Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 1 Oct. 2025
An extermination of the brutes in the Middle East, presided over by Obama’s successors, has been followed by a swift cancellation by Trumpian decree of the postracial age.
—Pankaj Mishra, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
But the spread of agriculture and extermination of prairie dogs have sharply reduced the owl’s western populations.
—Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
The four women, three of whom were Jewish, were all inmates of Auschwitz, the Nazis’ most notorious extermination camp outside the southern Polish city of Oświęcim.
—Literary Hub, 17 Sep. 2025
Szames’ likeness and story are part of the RUTH exhibition, which opened in January and includes life-size cutouts and keepsakes of San Diego County survivors of the Nazi extermination campaign against European Jews.
—Ashley MacKin Solomon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Sep. 2025
Yet this divide-and-conquer approach, combined with the relentless attacks on civilians, has also entrenched resistance among ordinary Gazans, who now perceive Israel as undertaking a war of extermination.
—Leila Seurat, Foreign Affairs, 26 Aug. 2025
Palestinians and Israeli Jews also came to regard the other side’s actions as fulfillments of their own national nightmares, ethnic cleansing for one and extermination for the other.
—Hussein Agha, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2025
The Holocaust led to the extermination of 6 million Jews — so recent that some who lived it are still living.
—Seth Lavin, Chicago Tribune, 6 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for extermination
Noun
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Shackleton blamed the sinking of the Endurance on the destruction of its rudder; for more than a century, historians accepted this explanation.—
Mindy Weisberger,
CNN Money,
6 Oct. 2025
-
They’re often greeted with the sight of their mischievous pup climbing onto furniture or causing destruction while unattended.—
Alyce Collins,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Tuesday marks two years since the Israel-Hamas war began, bringing devastation across the region.—
Mary Kekatos,
ABC News,
7 Oct. 2025
-
After two years of devastation in Gaza, conditions appeared set to make a lasting ceasefire at least possible, if not probable.—
Ruth Margalit,
New Yorker,
4 Oct. 2025
Noun
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This discovery sheds light on the history of the species’ extinction.—
Real-Time News team,
Miami Herald,
3 Oct. 2025
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Almost all of the largest plant and animal species on Earth were driven to extinction, including all of the non-avian dinosaurs and the last of the flying reptiles.—
Ethan Siegel,
Big Think,
2 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Jilly will undoubtedly be best remembered for her chart-topping series The Rutshire Chronicles and its havoc-making and handsome show-jumping hero Rupert Campbell-Black.—
Mekishana Pierre,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Oct. 2025
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In total, Elanga provided five first-half crosses and, while only Gordon’s counted as ‘completed’, that does a disservice to the havoc the Sweden international caused.—
Chris Waugh,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The sign — fixed high on the outside wall of the black and red painted concrete block building — was to be removed before demolition and donated to the Wisconsin Black Historical Society/ Museum under the requirements of the demolition contract.—
Mary Spicuzza,
jsonline.com,
6 Oct. 2025
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In 1983, a report estimated that, since 1970, New York City had lost approximately three hundred and ten thousand apartments to abandonment or demolition—many were burned.—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
6 Oct. 2025
Noun
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According to Hanke, Milei’s big loss in the Buenos Aires contest and the acceleration in the peso’s decline confirmed the Money Doctor’s warning that the inevitable lure for mismanaging the peso was Milei’s Achilles’ heel.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
8 Oct. 2025
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Completely outplayed by the Brewers thus far in a National League Division Series, the Cubs are teetering on the brink of elimination after Monday night’s 7-3 loss at American Family Field.—
Patrick Mooney,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Extermination.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/extermination. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
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