extinguishing

Definition of extinguishingnext
present participle of extinguish
1
as in choking
to cause to cease burning the fire in the skillet was quickly extinguished by slamming the lid on

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2
as in destroying
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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3
as in shushing
to stop the noise or speech of her final, telling point extinguished her opponents on the city council

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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 extinguishing The Fort Worth Fire Department assisted with extinguishing the blaze, according to the post. Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Jan. 2026 The initial response included extinguishing the fire on the sulfur car and deploying water to cool and solidify the leaking material, effectively plugging the leak. Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 31 Dec. 2025 The fire was isolated to a certain area of the substation and ended up extinguishing by itself, so no fire suppression efforts occurred. Nollyanne Delacruz, Mercury News, 25 Dec. 2025 More than 40 firefighters and EMS workers assisted in extinguishing the fire. Frederick Sutton Sinclair, CBS News, 5 Dec. 2025 Cincinnati fire and police are investigating after fire crews found a body while extinguishing an outdoor fire in Clifton on Sunday. Enquirer Staff, Cincinnati Enquirer, 16 Nov. 2025 Testing shows the soybean foam is as effective at extinguishing fires as PFAS-containing products. Laura Schulte, jsonline.com, 11 Nov. 2025 Images obtained by local media show firefighters extinguishing massive flames, and photos of the aftermath show the factory's siding completely burned, leaving the interior of the building exposed. Charlotte Phillipp, PEOPLE, 9 Nov. 2025 Unlike traditional firefighting systems that release extinguishing agents throughout an entire compartment, KIMM’s technology targets only the fire source. Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 6 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for extinguishing
Verb
  • Local news outlets, however, reported that the actor has been in an intensive care unit at a hospital in Seoul after collapsing while choking on food at his home.
    Anna Kaufman, USA Today, 5 Jan. 2026
  • Seven elderly men and women were hospitalized after choking on mochi in the first three days of 2026, Japan Today reported, citing the Tokyo Fire Department.
    Stephen Smith, CBS News, 5 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • By the 1960s, gas flares and untreated waste spillage were destroying their forests.
    Stanley Stewart, Travel + Leisure, 10 Jan. 2026
  • And there is a risk of the parasites becoming dormant for years before reactivating and destroying a new cornea.
    Kristen Rogers, CNN Money, 10 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • After once rising from her seat to scold a man recording the broadcast on his phone to shushing in-studio viewers during an interview with Zohran Mamdani, Whoopi Goldberg just wrote another chapter in her comical relationship with The View's studio audience.
    Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Jan. 2026
  • The snow was shushing off the roof of the garage and down on the driveway.
    Alan Gionet, CBS News, 3 Dec. 2025
Verb
  • However, looks aren't the only reason Madix has been quenching our thirst lately.
    Breanna Davis, Refinery29, 19 Nov. 2025
  • This rich yet silky balm delivers up to 24 hours of moisture, instantly quenching dry, chapped lips and locking it in for lasting softness.
    Christa Joanna Lee, Allure, 25 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The move came after the Office of County Administration released December cost estimates for demolishing the building and renovating it.
    John Lomax V, Houston Chronicle, 7 Jan. 2026
  • Fully reopening Leetsdale Drive is contingent on demolishing parts of the charred apartment complex that are still standing, Murphy said.
    Lauren Penington, Denver Post, 6 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • Trump’s immigration policies don’t make sense as a pro-worker agenda, but do make sense as a way of silencing dissent and keeping out nonwhite immigrants.
    Gilad Edelman, The Atlantic, 5 Jan. 2026
  • Students have been instructed to continue sheltering in place until further notice, locking doors and silencing phones.
    Danya Gainor, CNN Money, 13 Dec. 2025
Verb
  • The coffee chain is blanketing the country, one sticky-sweet, psychedelically colored beverage at a time.
    Tom Foster, Bloomberg, 5 Jan. 2026
  • Forecasters predict a slightly higher amount — between 3 and 5 inches — will fall along a narrow corridor south of Indianapolis, blanketing Terre Haute, Bloomington and Columbus.
    Ryan Murphy, IndyStar, 11 Dec. 2025
Verb
  • And, from this week’s issue, Nicola Twilley’s reporting on another lingering effect of the wildfires—smoke taint that is ruining grapes and threatening California’s wine industry.
    Dana Goodyear, New Yorker, 7 Jan. 2026
  • The video then shows the man asking if the situation was ruining Kaleel's Christmas.
    Jade Jackson, IndyStar, 6 Jan. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Extinguishing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/extinguishing. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.

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