Annihilate definition

ə-nīə-lāt
annihilated annihilates annihilating
See word origin
Frequency:
To destroy completely; put out of existence; demolish.

An atomic bomb can annihilate a city.

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(physics) To convert (a subatomic particle) to energy or high-energy particles by annihilation.
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To destroy completely.

The naval force was annihilated during the attack.

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To kill.
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To consider or cause to be of no importance or without effect; nullify.

To annihilate another's ambition.

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To reduce to nonexistence.
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To be completely destructive.
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(archaic) To treat as worthless, to vilify.
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The definition of annihilate means to completely destroy.

To bomb a building, murdering all of the inhabitants, is an example of annihilate.

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To defeat decisively.

Annihilated the league champions in the playoffs.

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(physics) To participate in annihilation. Used of particles and antiparticles.
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To reduce to nothing, to destroy, to eradicate.

An atom bomb can annihilate a whole city.

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To conquer decisively; crush.
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Origin of annihilate

  • Late Latin annihilāre annihilāt- Latin ad- ad- Latin nihil nothing ne in Indo-European roots

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • From Latin annihilō (“I reduce to nothing”), from ad (“to”) + nihil (“nothing”).

    From Wiktionary

Annihilate Sentence Examples

  • Did you really almost annihilate the human race?

  • If Ritschl had clearly shown that judgments of value enfold and transform other types of knowledge, just as the "spiritual man" includes and transfigures but does not annihilate the "natural man," then within the compass of this spiritually conditioned knowledge all other knowledge would be seen to have a function and a home.

  • The reasoning behind MAD was that if we can annihilate the Soviets or the Chinese and they in turn can annihilate us, then none of us will start a war.

  • Artillery had fallen, technically, far behind the infantry arm, and in face of long-range rifle fire could not annihilate the hostile line with case-shot fire as in the days of Napoleon.

  • It is now generally recognized that Hertzian wave telegraphy, or radio-telegraphy, as it is sometimes called, has a special field of operations of its own, and that the anticipations which were at one time excited by uninformed persons that it would speedily annihilate all telegraphy conducted with wires have been dispersed by experience.

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