extinguish
/iks'tiɳgwiʃ/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Verb:
- To cause (a fire, light, or flame) to stop burning or shining: To put out or quench something that is burning or emitting light.
- To end or destroy something, often completely: To eliminate, terminate, or bring to an end a condition, feeling, or existence.
- To obscure or eclipse something: To make something appear dull or insignificant by comparison.
Examples of Usage
- Verb:
- Please extinguish all candles before leaving the room.
- The fire department worked for hours to extinguish the blaze.
- The new policy aims to extinguish corruption within the organization.
- Her brilliant performance extinguished any doubts about her talent.
Advanced Usage
- "to extinguish a debt": To pay off a debt completely, eliminating the obligation.
- He sold his car to extinguish his remaining debt.
- "to extinguish hope": To destroy all hope or optimism.
- The failed peace talks extinguished hope for a swift resolution.
- "to extinguish a right" (Legal): To nullify or cancel a legal right or claim.
- The contract clause could extinguish the tenant's right to renew.
Variants and Related Words
- Extinguishable (adj): Capable of being extinguished.
- The fire was small and easily extinguishable.
- Extinguisher (n): A device for putting out fires, especially a portable one.
- Every kitchen should have a fire extinguisher.
- Extinguishment (n): The act of extinguishing or the state of being extinguished.
- The extinguishment of the ancient tradition saddened the elders.
Synonyms
- Quench: To put out (a fire) or satisfy (a thirst).
- Douse: To drench or extinguish with liquid.
- Annihilate: To destroy utterly.
- Obliterate: To remove all traces of; to wipe out.
- Suppress: To forcibly put an end to.
Related Phrasal Verbs
- Snuff out: To extinguish a flame by pinching or covering it; to end something abruptly.
- He snuffed out the candle with his fingers.
- The dictator's regime snuffed out political dissent.
- Stub out: To extinguish a cigarette or cigar by pressing the burning end against a surface.
- He stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray.
Related Idioms
- To extinguish the light of: To kill or destroy someone or something precious.
- The war extinguished the light of a generation.
- To extinguish a spark before it becomes a flame: To stop a problem when it is still small, before it grows.
- Good managers extinguish conflicts before they escalate.
Verb
- kill in large numbers
- the plague wiped out an entire population
- terminate, end, or take out
- Let's eliminate the course on Akkadian hieroglyphics
- Socialism extinguished these archaic customs
- eliminate my debts
- extinguish by crushing
- stub out your cigar
- put out, as of fires, flames, or lights
- Too big to be extinguished at once, the forest fires at best could be contained
- quench the flames
- snuff out the candles
- put an end to; kill
- The Nazis snuffed out the life of many Jewish children