1
as in destroying
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
2
as in murdering
to put to death deliberately
an elaborate setup to rub out rival mobsters
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in eradicating
to destroy all traces of
a promise to rub out the city's drug trade
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rubbing out
Verb
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The two initial quakes flattened villages in both provinces, destroying more than 6,700 homes, and rescue workers pulled bodies from the rubble on Thursday.—
Mohammad Yunus Yawar,
USA Today,
5 Sep. 2025 -
As Greengrass was editing the picture, wildfires tore through the Pacific Palisades and Altadena in Southern California, killing residents and destroying homes.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The new season sets Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) on a quest to find whoever is threatening the life of her roommate Enid Sinclair (Emma Myers), and murdering people near the campus of Nevermore Academy with the help of a murder of crows.—
Saman Shafiq,
USA Today,
3 Sep. 2025
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When he was first questioned by the police, the outlet alleged that Mirza accused a drug dealer of murdering Marsuk, saying that he was also injured and threatened in the altercation.—
Becca Longmire,
People.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Israel's government says the offensive is aimed at eradicating Hamas, which still holds Israeli hostages.—
Aya Batrawy,
NPR,
1 Sep. 2025
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The Shook family and its firm are active fundraisers for research and therapies aimed at eradicating breast cancer.—
Mark Tatge,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Lewis Hamilton lost control of his Ferrari and crashed out of the Dutch Grand Prix, ruining a chance to nab a good haul of points.—
Nelson Espinal,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Sep. 2025
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Thanks, man, for ruining an almost-letter-perfect red-carpet walk.—
Guy Martin,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Court filings also describe discussions of assassinating Lula, his vice president Geraldo Alckmin, and Justice de Moraes.—
Julia Vargas Jones,
CNN Money,
2 Sep. 2025
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Charles Guiteau was executed in 1882 for assassinating President James Garfield, the center said.—
Josh Meyer,
USA Today,
26 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Johnson’s legacy feels particularly urgent as the National Park Service recently removed all references to transgender people from its New York Stonewall National Monument website, erasing the central role trans women of color played in the 1969 riots.—
Essence,
Essence,
6 Sep. 2025
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These services do all the work for you by actively monitoring and systematically erasing your personal information from hundreds of websites.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
6 Sep. 2025
Verb
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About 90% of the former Spring Hill Mall is gone and work demolishing the final anchor store set to begin in the next couple of weeks, officials said.—
Gloria Casas,
Chicago Tribune,
6 Sep. 2025
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After filing the first lawsuit, attorney Katie Steele of Varghese Summersett also sought a temporary restraining order to prevent the owners from removing or destroying tenants’ property from the units, or demolishing the building, and to preserve critical evidence in the case.—
Fousia Abdullahi,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The Razorbacks rocked Alabama A&M 52-7 on Saturday while Arkansas State was taking out Southeast Missouri State 42-24.—
Tom Murphy,
Arkansas Online,
1 Sep. 2025
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One of Mascherano’s biggest decisions was taking a defensive risk by taking out center back Lujan with the team trailing 1-0 and replacing him with Segovia, an attacker.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
28 Aug. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Rubbing out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rubbing%20out. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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