From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishexterminateex‧ter‧mi‧nate /ɪkˈstɜːməneɪt $ -ɜːr-/ verb [transitive] KILLto kill large numbers of people or animals of a particular type so that they no longer exist Staff use the poison to exterminate moles and rabbits.► see thesaurus at kill —exterminator noun [countable] —extermination /ɪkˌstɜːməˈneɪʃən $ -ɜːr-/ noun [countable, uncountable] the extermination of the indigenous peoples→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
exterminate• Let them kill, skin and sell until the buffalo are exterminated.• The logic of Fly was simple: there is a fly on the screen that is bothersome and should be exterminated.• The Khmer Rouge exterminated as many as two million Cambodiansa quarter of the population.• There was an attempt to exterminate ethnic groups in the north of the country.• By exterminating farm animals, the option of small organic farms is eroded.• Each new form will tend to take the place of, and finally to exterminate, its own less improved parent.• Ranchers systematically exterminated prairie dogs on their land.• Boves's mestizos aimed to exterminate the creoles and to destroy their property.• This elegant insect is a formidable greenfly guzzler and its larvae are particularly good at exterminating these ubiquitous pests.Origin exterminate (1500-1600) Latin past participle of exterminare “to drive out”, from terminus “edge” 