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.

The way football is broadcast manages to obliterate any difference between an informal consumer and a face-painting fanatic.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 22, 2026

Nearly 60 years later, Congress has done all it can to obliterate that mission.

From Slate • Jul. 17, 2025

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

From BBC • Jul. 2, 2025

Now he’s a memory that Neil Druckmann, Craig Mazin and fellow writer Halley Gross revisit one more time, and at a point in Ellie’s journey when a vendetta threatens to obliterate her moral compass.

From Salon • May 19, 2025

With his one hand it would be possible in seconds to squeeze Hatsue’s letter into motes of dust and obliterate its message forever.

From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson

Vocabulary lists containing obliterate

List 3

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This Week in Words: September 17 - 24, 2017

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