as in erases
to destroy all traces of
in a stroke, the March snowstorm obliterated our hopes for an early spring
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Recent Examples of obliterates
Moscow is at the mercy of an American president who circumvents traditional channels of power and obliterates the constraints that once regulated their use.
—
Alan Cullison, The Atlantic, 13 Feb. 2026
After Cruise's Ethan Hunt is falsely accused of planting a bomb that nearly obliterates the Kremlin, he is secretly tasked with exposing the real culprit, teaming with fellow agents Jane (Paula Patton) and Benji (Simon Pegg) and an intelligence analyst (Jeremy Renner) on a covert mission.
—Kevin Jacobsen, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Jan. 2026
Suddenly, several themes and visuals from their disaster thriller about a comet that obliterates the majority of Earth were on display in real time.
—Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 9 Jan. 2026
Then Godzilla absolutely obliterates him with his atomic breath.
—James Grebey, Vulture, 9 Jan. 2026
This, to put it mildly, is not ideal, not when it is put together with the kind of afternoon which obliterates mitigation.
—George Caulkin, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025
In this new gem, the USS Farragut is on a planetary survey of Helicon Gamma when a shark-like scavenger spaceship appears and obliterates the planet.
—Jeff Spry, Space.com, 20 Aug. 2025
Loktev grants us glimpses of life lived on the margins of that work, and the unwavering steadiness of her gaze obliterates any distinctions between the personal, the professional, and the political.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2025
Alan Cullison, The Atlantic, 13 Feb. 2026
After Cruise's Ethan Hunt is falsely accused of planting a bomb that nearly obliterates the Kremlin, he is secretly tasked with exposing the real culprit, teaming with fellow agents Jane (Paula Patton) and Benji (Simon Pegg) and an intelligence analyst (Jeremy Renner) on a covert mission.
—Kevin Jacobsen, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Jan. 2026
Suddenly, several themes and visuals from their disaster thriller about a comet that obliterates the majority of Earth were on display in real time.
—Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 9 Jan. 2026
Then Godzilla absolutely obliterates him with his atomic breath.
—James Grebey, Vulture, 9 Jan. 2026
This, to put it mildly, is not ideal, not when it is put together with the kind of afternoon which obliterates mitigation.
—George Caulkin, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025
In this new gem, the USS Farragut is on a planetary survey of Helicon Gamma when a shark-like scavenger spaceship appears and obliterates the planet.
—Jeff Spry, Space.com, 20 Aug. 2025
Loktev grants us glimpses of life lived on the margins of that work, and the unwavering steadiness of her gaze obliterates any distinctions between the personal, the professional, and the political.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obliterates
Verb
-
The other serves as the president and CEO of Undue Medical Debt, the only nonprofit that acquires and erases medical debt for those most burdened.—
Allison Sesso,
STAT,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Food and drink The casual, open-plan kitchen erases the divide between Sussurro’s chefs and guests, inviting collaboration and conversation sparked by the display of fresh produce harvested straight from the on-site garden or sourced from organic farmers’ markets.—
Megan Spurrell,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
These four novels create a convincing, wrenching, kaleidoscopic picture of the range and repetitions of the most fatal kind of love; the sort of love that allows nothing else to grow around it, that eradicates all dignity; a love which, in order to be completed, must be told.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 Feb. 2026
-
The path to health involves aggressive treatment that eradicates the disease.—
Pedro A. Rojas Arroyo,
Boston Herald,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Instead, this measure abolishes them.—
Jon Coupal,
Oc Register,
31 Aug. 2025
-
The Iranian parliament has just approved a law that abolishes prison sentences for those who had to leave Iran illegally.—
Zac Ntim,
Deadline,
11 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Politicizing the panel destroys that function.—
Berkeley Lovelace Jr,
NBC news,
27 Feb. 2026
-
In 2024, a team identified the molecular mechanisms behind the microbe that destroys bananas.—
Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
19 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Obliterates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obliterates. Accessed 2 Mar. 2026.
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