annihilating

present participle of annihilate
1
2
as in destroying
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of the tornado simply annihilated the family's home

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

3

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of annihilating Dark stars are hypothetical primordial stars that, rather than producing energy through nuclear fusion, are instead powered by self-annihilating dark matter within their cores. Robert Lea, Space.com, 21 Aug. 2026 The accusation works its way through society, annihilating reputations, deservedly or not. Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026 As an arachnid alien-annihilating action game, Helldivers seems like the perfect recipe for a popcorn flick. Matt Cabral, Entertainment Weekly, 15 July 2026 Chess is about annihilating your opponent. Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 24 June 2026 If Neptune did have an original set of moons that more closely resembled those of its planetary neighbors, the arrival of Triton — which is just smaller than our own moon — would have wreaked havoc, crashing into the other satellites and annihilating some of them. Jacopo Prisco, CNN Money, 20 May 2026 Now southern Republicans are annihilating Black political power. Adam Serwer, The Atlantic, 19 May 2026 Instead, it is filled with a froth of virtual particles becoming real in pairs, waving to us, annihilating each other, and sinking back into the soup of virtual particles. Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 15 May 2026 One compelling hypothesis is that dark matter particles in the dense central halo are interacting with and annihilating one another, releasing energy as gamma rays. Paul M. Sutter, Scientific American, 6 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for annihilating
Verb
  • Back then, researchers were focused on eradicating the New World screwworm, a nasty pest that lays its eggs in wounds on living creatures.
    Alex Harris, Miami Herald, 21 Sep. 2026
  • The quest for 500 million flies The only way the US has succeeded in eradicating screwworm is by breeding millions of flies, sterilizing them using radiation and dropping them in areas with infestations.
    Jen Christensen, CNN Money, 7 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Fox attorneys also accused executives at both Dominion and Smartmatic of destroying evidence in their respective cases, and sought sanctions.
    Maddy Lauria, NPR, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Because both sides can persistently generate concentrated effects without concentrating forces, destroying the enemy’s ability to keep fighting becomes harder.
    NADIA SCHADLOW, Foreign Affairs, 18 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Andersson faces the task of overcoming differences in the opposition bloc.
    ABC News, ABC News, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Also, underwater solar deployment requires overcoming extreme conditions such as corrosive salt, high pressure, and water ingress.
    Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 11 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Treating those experiences as interchangeable risks erasing the sacrifice behind one of them.
    Angelette C. Aviles, Baltimore Sun, 19 Sep. 2026
  • After erasing a three-touchdown deficit in the second half, the Saints matched the Lions' touchdown in overtime and tried to win the game with a 2-point conversion that failed when second-year quarterback Tyler Shough's pass fell incomplete.
    ABC News, ABC News, 14 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • On Thursday, the judge ordered the Kennedy Center to provide 30 days' notice before making any major physical changes to the building, including demolishing it.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 20 Sep. 2026
  • On Thursday, the judge ordered the Kennedy Center to provide 30 days’ notice before making any major physical changes to the building, including demolishing it.
    Gary Fields, Los Angeles Times, 19 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • People are already burying the Chargers and this line moved from nearly double-digits (Chargers -9½) to under the key number of 7.
    Dan Zaksheske OutKick, FOXNews.com, 17 Sep. 2026
  • What competing on Food Network's Pitmasters taught him about cooking under pressure, from elaborate plating to burying food underground and cooking it over heated stones.
    Sid Evans, Southern Living, 15 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Other positions of the Democratic Socialists of America party that have come under fire in the 2026 election cycle have included abolishing the Senate, closing prisons, and having corporations become owned by the government.
    Tracy Grant, Encyclopedia Britannica, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Karishma Manzur, a medical scientist and first-time candidate, supported Medicare for All and abolishing ICE while declining money from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC.
    Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 9 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • And Hollywood really should stop ruining good shows trying to chase that approval.
    Dan Zaksheske OutKick, FOXNews.com, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The near-miss is one of the more potent and consequential instances of a hallucinating AI ruining the reliability of a professional report.
    Kyle Orland, ArsTechnica, 18 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Annihilating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/annihilating. Accessed 23 Sep. 2026.

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