obliterate

[uh-blit-uh-reyt] / əˈblɪt əˌreɪt /

VERB

destroy

Synonyms

STRONGEST

annihilate black out eliminate eradicate erase expunge exterminate knock out obscure ravage smash wash out wipe out

STRONG

ax bog cancel cover cut defeat delete efface extirpate finish kill level liquidate nix off scratch scrub sink squash torpedo total trash waste zap

WEAK

KO X out blot out blue pencil do in finish off knock off mark out root out rub off rub out shoot down take apart take out wipe off face of earth

Antonyms

STRONGEST

add aid assist bear build create fix help revive

STRONG

begin construct initiate keep leave alone save schedule set up start

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But now satellite images reveal that Iran is repairing the damage done, suggesting he didn’t obliterate the sites after all.

From Slate • Feb. 6, 2026

What happens in the rest of the world could "obliterate" the budget choices the chancellor has already made.

From BBC • Jul. 2, 2025

She does not obliterate herself, as Tár would demand — she frees herself.

From Salon • Mar. 12, 2025

And why does it feel like large swaths of the local hip-hop world not only want to pretend that the killing never happened, but simultaneously obliterate all evidence of Drakeo’s era-defining impact?

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 25, 2025

So much pain it wore a path in the streets and across everyone’s hearts, threatening to obliterate everything else.

From "Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story" by Nora Raleigh Baskin

obliterate

Example Sentences

Related Words