Synonym Chooser

How does the verb exterminate differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of exterminate are eradicate, extirpate, and uproot. While all these words mean "to effect the destruction or abolition of something," exterminate implies complete and immediate extinction by killing off all individuals.

exterminate cockroaches

When is eradicate a more appropriate choice than exterminate?

The meanings of eradicate and exterminate largely overlap; however, eradicate implies the driving out or elimination of something that has established itself.

a campaign to eradicate illiteracy

When is it sensible to use extirpate instead of exterminate?

The words extirpate and exterminate can be used in similar contexts, but 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

When might uproot be a better fit than exterminate?

In some situations, the words uproot and exterminate are roughly equivalent. However, uproot implies a forcible or violent removal and stresses displacement or dislodgment rather than immediate destruction.

the war uprooted thousands

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 exterminate Nobody loathes the creatures more than Dafoe’s Maxim, who blames them for his wife’s death and assembles an army of young boys to exterminate the magical beings from the Carpathian forests. Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 17 Apr. 2025 Watch Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings on Disney+ Eternals After exterminating the invasive Deviants, the Eternals, a group of ancient heroes with unique powers, separate for 500 years. Jacqueline Weiss, People.com, 8 Mar. 2025 Israel’s allies are desperately trying to change the country’s war trajectory as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refuses to relent on his mission to exterminate Hamas. Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 22 May 2025 Tibbles and her feral offspring swiftly exterminated the island’s endemic Lyall’s wren — a flightless, songbird that had evolved without mammalian predators. Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 26 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for exterminate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for exterminate
Verb
  • Davis has partnered with multiple programs to eradicate childhood hunger in the U.S. and recently launched the Davis-Tennon Foundation.
    Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 30 June 2025
  • Vaccines eradicated smallpox and dramatically reduced infant deaths from measles, tuberculosis, whooping cough, and tetanus.
    Kelsey Piper, Vox, 27 June 2025
Verb
  • Federal climate science is being systematically erased.
    Matthew Glasser, ABC News, 1 July 2025
  • The Human Constant Technological revolutions do not erase the need for human judgment.
    Solange Charas, Forbes.com, 30 June 2025
Verb
  • While Minnesota abolished the death penalty over a century ago, the federal murder charges carry a maximum penalty of capital punishment.
    Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 9 July 2025
  • Minnesota abolished its state death penalty in 1911.
    Steve Karnowski, Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2025
Verb
  • In September 2024, the same month as the pager attack and assassination of Hezbollah’s leader, Israel launched the most extensive campaign of airstrikes in the air force’s history hitherto, destroying much of Hezbollah’s strategic surface-to-surface missile stockpiles.
    Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 1 July 2025
  • Grossi acknowledged that some of the uranium already enriched by Iranian scientists could have been destroyed as part of the attack.
    John Bacon, USA Today, 30 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Exterminate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/exterminate. Accessed 15 Jul. 2025.

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