Etymology

exterminate

E1X8T1E1R1M3I1N1A1T1E1

Today it means: To kill or otherwise permanently eliminate all of (a population, often of pests or undesirables), usually intentionally. Full definition →

Latin exterminātus
Ask AI about its historyChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

The story

  1. Latin · borrowed fromexterminātus
  2. English todayexterminate

Borrowed from Latin exterminātus, perfect passive participle of exterminō (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from ex- (“thoroughly”) + terminō (“to finish, close, end”), from terminus (“limit, end”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.