Synonyms of expunge

expunge

verb

ik-ˈspənj 

as in to erase

to destroy all traces of

time and the weather have expunged any evidence that a thriving community once existed here

Synonyms & Similar Words

• erase
• eradicate
• abolish
• destroy
• obliterate
• efface
• exterminate
• annihilate
• cancel
• liquidate
• extirpate
• wipe out
• sweep (away)
• demolish
• shatter
• clean (up)
• stamp (out)
• blot out
• kill
• dismantle
• discard
• ruin
• root (out)
• snuff (out)
• rub out
• consume
• black out
• devastate
• flatten
• ravage
• decimate
• dissolve
• expel
• wreck
• fragment
• waste
• tear down
• eject
• mow (down)
• smash
• devour
• finish
• raze
• terminate
• powder
• total
• dash
• excise
• oust
• kill off
• blow up
• jettison
• pulverize
• atomize
• ditch
• doom
• blast
• zap
• throw out
• cut
• dynamite
• splinter

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• preserve
• protect
• save
• conserve
• create
• build
• make
• construct
• form
• manufacture
• shape
• restore
• fabricate
• forge
• reconstruct
• renew
• frame
• rebuild
• repair
• fix
• patch
• fashion
• mend
• renovate
• recondition
• revamp

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of expunge

There is no longer any public trace of Helton’s criminal case in the Ohio county court system; certain nonviolent cases are allowed to be sealed or expunged after a set amount of time has passed. — Jennifer Smith Richards, ProPublica, 16 July 2026

Have you been arrested, charged or convicted of a crime, had an adjudication withheld or had a matter sealed or expunged? — Stephen V. Iacullo, Sun Sentinel, 16 July 2026

These charges were so baseless that the Cook County State’s Attorney declined to prosecute me and expunged my name and the charge from the record. — Literary Hub, 14 July 2026

With Ukraine busy expunging Russian cultural influences, and cities and towns removing Russian historical and literary figures’ statues and street names, the idea of a new program focused on Ukraine’s former imperial master raised eyebrows. — Howard Lafranchi, Christian Science Monitor, 27 June 2026

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