rubbed out

past tense of rub out
1
as in destroyed
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of aerial bombs rubbed out the oil refinery

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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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 rubbed out No Mob boss, cheerfully decreeing that an inconvenient witness be rubbed out, could be more resolute. Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rubbed out
Verb
  • Among them was Eilene Oken, 38, who walked through what used to be her neighbourhood, only to find her home completely destroyed.
    CNN Money, CNN Money, 4 Nov. 2025
  • Just under two million Palestinians—virtually the entire population of Gaza—have been displaced since October 2023, many repeatedly, and Israeli forces have damaged or destroyed more than 90 percent of homes in the Strip.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 3 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • Kirk was assassinated while at an event at the campus of Utah Valley University in September.
    Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 30 Oct. 2025
  • Kirk was assassinated last month at Utah Valley University.
    Hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The country has also eradicated once-rampant tropical diseases like malaria.
    Angelica Ang, Fortune, 30 Oct. 2025
  • The New World screwworm was successfully eradicated from the United States in 1966.
    Lori Ann LaRocco, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • An old fur coat or feather stole could also be ruined.
    Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 31 Oct. 2025
  • Cash is king right now, Hsia said, and the AFJ is matching up to $1 million in donations that will go toward things such as new roofs for houses whose roofs were blown off and new furniture after many people's belongings were soaked through and ruined.
    Matt Nighswander, NBC news, 30 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Brady is also working with Kudos to adapt The Other Half, Charlotte Vassell’s novel about an ambitious young detective investigating the death of a posh socialite, found murdered on Hampstead Heath.
    Jake Kanter, Deadline, 5 Nov. 2025
  • Paul had been charged with three felony counts, including boating under the influence, and was awaiting trial when he was murdered.
    Emily Blackwood, PEOPLE, 5 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • It wasn’t erased, but it was pushed down.
    Ben Morse, CNN Money, 30 Oct. 2025
  • His designer, Milicent Patrick, was erased from the story of the film for nearly 50 years, per NPR, but has since regained her place as the mother of this unforgettable monster.
    Katie Rife, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Bonner's father worked at the Product Development Center — part of which Bonner demolished to make way for the new World Headquarters building.
    Jamie L. LaReau, USA Today, 2 Nov. 2025
  • The ballroom project has stirred controversy, as the East Wing, home of the First Lady’s staff and long a grand entrance for White House events, was demolished to make room for the new ballroom.
    Kate Wolffe October 30, Sacbee.com, 30 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • While the women accused in the infamous Salem witch trials in colonial America have long since been pardoned, the convictions of hundreds of British women executed under similar laws officially still stand.
    James Frater, CNN Money, 31 Oct. 2025
  • The story of Aileen Wuornos—who murdered seven men between 1989 and 1990 and was executed by lethal injection in 2002—has long been a fixture of culture, fictionalized on TV and dramatized for film, with Charlize Theron playing the serial killer in an Oscar-winning role.
    Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 30 Oct. 2025

Cite this Entry

“Rubbed out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rubbed%20out. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.

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