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
Relevance
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rubbing out
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
-
But there is more murdering and banishing to come.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
9 Jan. 2026
-
The Huntsman centers on an ICU nurse who becomes immersed in a dangerous world after agreeing to help a coma patient accused of murdering six women.—
Ryan Gajewski,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Global health officials are aiming to replicate the success of eradicating smallpox, which in 1980 became the first disease to be eliminated through human efforts.—
Lauren Kent,
CNN Money,
8 Dec. 2025
-
These materials conform precisely to the shape of your unique foot, eradicating extra space in your boots.—
Sergei Poljak,
Outside,
16 Nov. 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
Verb
-
Another 33 hours passed before law enforcement arrested 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, the defendant now facing a possible death sentence if found guilty by a jury in Utah for allegedly assassinating Kirk.—
Kaelan Deese,
The Washington Examiner,
15 Dec. 2025
-
The remainder of my life will be dedicated to assassinating judges, attorneys, and a police station's entire shift staff.—
Matthew Rodriguez,
CBS News,
4 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
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,
10 Jan. 2026
-
But the stock plummeted in the fourth quarter, more than erasing those earlier gains, as Wall Street became more skeptical of the company's ability to repay debts while delivering on AI.—
Jordan Novet,
CNBC,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Yet for all of Malinin’s athleticism and his Beamonesque ability to take flight what has been most telling in what has already been a world record-shattering Olympic season has been the maturity of his skating, the willingness to take emotional risks in his programs.—
Scott M. Reid,
Oc Register,
6 Jan. 2026
-
Bana and Rocha were among the 615 participants in the 27th annual Waukegan Polar Bear Plunge on Thursday at the Waukegan Municipal Beach, shattering the record of 540 set in 2024, and collectively raising more than $20,000 for Special Recreation Services of Northern Lake County.—
Steve Sadin,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The number of homebuyers taking out VA loans also increased in August, rising 3 percent year-over-year nationwide—bucking the trend observed for conventional loans, which declined 9 percent year-over-year in the same month.—
Giulia Carbonaro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Literally sitting on the ground, probably kneeling and just watching the television, taking out the tape, rewinding it, putting it back in and watching it over and over again.—
Jack Irvin,
PEOPLE,
6 Nov. 2025
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.
Cite this Entry
“Rubbing out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rubbing%20out. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share