rubbing out

present participle of rub out
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
3

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for rubbing out
Verb
  • The military has also been targeting and destroying high-rise buildings surrounding displacement camps, crowding Gaza City’s residents into ever-smaller spaces.
    Zeena Saifi, CNN Money, 12 Sep. 2025
  • Ultimately, North was found guilty of destroying official documents, accepting a home security system as a gift and obstructing Congress in 1989.
    Meredith Kile, PEOPLE, 11 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • In 1935, Qassam and two of his followers ambushed a group of British Mandate policemen, murdering a Jewish sergeant.
    Sean Durns, The Washington Examiner, 12 Sep. 2025
  • In 1981, James Reyos, a gay Apache man, was wrongly convicted of murdering a priest.
    Glenn Garner, Deadline, 10 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Book bans are targeting trans authors in conservative states, eradicating their work from curricula and library circulation.
    Grace Byron, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
  • Yet minimizing and possibly even eradicating infectious diseases is a collective act that requires nearly everyone to play their part.
    Simon Williams, Time, 8 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • And broadcasting your irritation too loudly risks ruining the atmosphere for everyone else just as much as their yelling or off-key chants.
    Mary Catherine McAnnally Scott, Southern Living, 6 Sep. 2025
  • Just as Alexis Bellino flubbed her second chance by aligning herself too closely with Johnny J, an Ed Hardy snapback that refuses to die, Gretchen is ruining hers by trying to relitigate things from the Obama Administration.
    Brian Moylan, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • 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
  • Charles Guiteau was executed in 1882 for assassinating President James Garfield, the center said.
    Josh Meyer, USA Today, 26 Aug. 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, 13 Sep. 2025
  • The brand’s eye-specific product packs a punch courtesy of antioxidants, fine line–erasing peptides, and Persian silk tree extract (the latter is both a preventative and curative measure against dark circles and puffiness).
    Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 12 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • An image taken on August 19 shows Israeli excavators and bulldozers demolishing buildings in Zeitoun.
    Zeena Saifi, CNN Money, 12 Sep. 2025
  • 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
Verb
  • Experts, however, are wary that users are taking out too many loans and could become overwhelmed with payments.
    Diane Brady, Fortune, 11 Sep. 2025
  • Unsurprisingly, Haas & Mehta cruised into the gold medal match from the top half after taking out the bracket favorite.
    Todd Boss, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 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 16 Sep. 2025.

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