Etymology

extirpate

ex·tir·pate
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Today it means: To clear an area of roots and stumps. Full definition →

Latin exstirpātus
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The story

  1. Latin · borrowed fromexstirpātus
  2. English todayextirpate

The verb is first attested in 1538, the adjective in 1541; borrowed from Latin exstirpātus perfect passive participle of exstirpō (“to uproot”), from ex- (“out of”) + stirps (“the lower part of the trunk of a tree, including the roots; the stem, stalk”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix)). Doublet of extirp. Common participial usage of the adjective up until Early Modern English.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.