Added 9 October 2026
annihilate
/əˈnaɪ.ə.leɪt/ verb
In Latin: annihilō, dēleō Wiktionary
verb Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about annihilate at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
-
To reduce to nothing, to destroy, to eradicate.
An atom bomb can annihilate a whole city.
- To react with antimatter, producing gamma radiation and (for higher-mass reactants, especially composite particles such as protons) lighter particles (such as pions, muons, and neutrinos).
- To treat as worthless, to vilify.
Origin
Borrowed from Latin annihilātus, perfect passive participle of annihilō (“to reduce to nothing”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from ad (“to”) + nihil (“nothing”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix). See also an-.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)