extinction

ex·tinc·tion

Use extinction in a sentence

noun

Extinction is defined as the act of ending the existence of a plant or animal.
An example of extinction is killing off the last of a rare bird.
The definition of extinction is putting something out.
An example of extinction is putting out a fire at a campsite.

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"extinction." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Extinction>.

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extinction. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Extinction

extinction

a putting out or being put out, as of a fire
a destroying or being destroyed; annihilation; abolition
the fact or state of being or becoming extinct
a dying out: said as of a biological species
the weakening and disappearance of a conditioned response that is no longer being reinforced

Origin of extinction

Middle English extinccioun from Classical Latin exstinctio from exstinctus: see extinct

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"extinction." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Extinction>.

APA Style

extinction. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Extinction

extinction

noun

a. The act of extinguishing: The extinction of the fire took several hours.
b. The condition of being extinguished: mourned the extinction of her dreams.
The fact of being extinct or the process of becoming extinct: the extinction of the passenger pigeon; languages that are in danger of extinction.
Psychology A reduction or a loss in the strength or rate of a conditioned response when the unconditioned stimulus or reinforcement is withheld.
Physiology A gradual decrease in the excitability of a nerve to a previously adequate stimulus, usually resulting in total loss of excitability.
Astronomy The dimming of celestial objects, usually measured in magnitudes, due to scattering and absorption of their light as it passes through interstellar dust clouds and the earth's atmosphere.

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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MLA Style

"extinction." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Extinction>.

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extinction. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Extinction

The fact of being extinct or the process of becoming extinct.
See more at background extinction
A progressive decrease in the strength of a conditioned response, often resulting in its elimination, because of withdrawal of a specific stimulus.

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MLA Style

"extinction." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Extinction>.

APA Style

extinction. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Extinction

Noun

(plural extinctions)

The action of making or becoming extinct; annihilation.
(astronomy) The absorption or scattering of electromagnetic radiation emitted by astronomical objects by intervening dust and gas before it reaches the observer.

Origin

From French extinction, from Latin extinctio (“extinction, annihilation”), from extinguere, past participle extinctus (“to extinguish”); see extinguish.

English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.

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Link to this page

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MLA Style

"extinction." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Extinction>.

APA Style

extinction. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Extinction

extinction - Medical Definition

n.

1. The act of extinguishing: The extinction of the fire took several hours.
2. The condition of being extinguished: mourned the extinction of their dreams.
The fact of being extinct or the process of becoming extinct: the extinction of the passenger pigeon; languages that are in danger of extinction.
Psychology A reduction or a loss in the strength or rate of a conditioned response when the unconditioned stimulus or reinforcement is withheld.
Physiology A gradual decrease in the excitability of a nerve to a previously adequate stimulus, usually resulting in total loss of excitability.