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Definitions

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

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

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

Not since Y2K had I felt so certain that something terrible was coming, something that would obliterate everything I’d known before.

From "Educated" by Tara Westover

From Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.