1
as in to choke
to cause to cease burning
the fire in the skillet was quickly extinguished by slamming the lid on
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to destroy
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of
a fatal blunder that extinguished all hope that the team would actually win the play-offs
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of extinguish
Smoke and an acrid smell lingered through the night as firefighters worked to extinguish the blaze.
—
Sacbee.com, 2 July 2025
By the time firefighters extinguished the blaze, the baby had died, the sheriff said.
—Mike Stunson, Kansas City Star, 30 June 2025
Firefighters quickly extinguished a brush fire on a Clairemont hillside Sunday morning.
—Kristen Taketa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 June 2025
Unfortunately, a drunken Ben makes a heinous error in judgment that abruptly extinguishes the generosity of their hosts.
—Dennis Harvey, Variety, 27 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for extinguish
Sacbee.com, 2 July 2025
By the time firefighters extinguished the blaze, the baby had died, the sheriff said.
—Mike Stunson, Kansas City Star, 30 June 2025
Firefighters quickly extinguished a brush fire on a Clairemont hillside Sunday morning.
—Kristen Taketa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 June 2025
Unfortunately, a drunken Ben makes a heinous error in judgment that abruptly extinguishes the generosity of their hosts.
—Dennis Harvey, Variety, 27 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for extinguish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for extinguish
Verb
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For more than a minute, audio captures the sounds of a struggle: grunting, choking.—
Miguel Torres,
AZCentral.com,
3 July 2025
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As a result, millions more children and vulnerable people will be forced to choke on toxic fumes while manufacturing executives pour more money into dying steel plants.—
MSNBC Newsweek,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 July 2025
Verb
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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
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This is the signature style of Russian killers — to destroy life by all methods at their disposal.—
Anders Hagstrom,
FOXNews.com,
30 June 2025
Verb
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For a start, the cheers from the nearby Andy Murray Arena are loud and booming, but so too is the exclusive balcony area hanging just to the side of the court, where people are sipping their wine or their Pimm’s and chatting loudly (the judge on court 1 has to shush them at one point).—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
20 June 2025
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The crowd had just spent an entire overtime shushing each other.—
Tony East,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2025
Verb
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From restoring elasticity to quenching dryness and nourishing the skin with essential vitamins and minerals, the best body oils can make everything below the neck supple, satiny, and ready to shine.—
Jenny Berg,
Vogue,
28 June 2025
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California’s existing groundwater infrastructure may fail to quench the state’s thirst in an increasingly arid future, even as officials celebrate widespread conservation achievements, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) warned on Tuesday.—
Sharon Udasin,
The Hill,
24 June 2025
Verb
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Hegseth touted Caine's explanation as proof the bombs fully demolished Fordow.—
Cybele Mayes-Osterman,
USA Today,
27 June 2025
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The more than 115-year-old Advocate Trinity building on the Southeast Side of Chicago, on 93rd Street, will continue to serve patients until the new hospital is ready, at which point it will be demolished.—
Lisa Schencker,
Chicago Tribune,
24 June 2025
Verb
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For Paul, the bout is another step in his attempt to silence the purists and reassert himself as more than a YouTube celebrity with gloves.—
Jad El Reda,
Los Angeles Times,
28 June 2025
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Undermining it can silence voices, suppress creativity and heighten risk exposure, especially in cybersecurity and compliance-sensitive environments where early detection and reporting are critical to resilience and trust.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
27 June 2025
Verb
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This is true of people who don’t bathe and also people who are fastidious about bathing and douse themselves in cologne, and everyone else in between.—
R. Eric Thomas,
Chicago Tribune,
29 June 2025
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He is accused of dousing a 25-year-old woman and her 11-month-old baby girl with pepper spray, hitting them in the face and arm, last Friday on a southbound M train as the train approached the Court Square-23rd St. station in Long Island City, police said.—
Roni Jacobson,
New York Daily News,
27 June 2025
Verb
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Now a wonderful memory of the occasion will be ruined in my memories.—
Eric Thomas,
Sun Sentinel,
9 July 2025
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However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.—
Olivia Lloyd
July 9,
Miami Herald,
9 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Extinguish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/extinguish. Accessed 13 Jul. 2025.
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