obliterating

verb

present participle of obliterate
as in eradicating
to destroy all traces of in a stroke, the March snowstorm obliterated our hopes for an early spring

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of obliterating Lasers fly at them, obliterating many. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 14 Apr. 2026 In other words, the state’s own wildfire failures are obliterating its climate goals. — Steven Greenhut, Oc Register, 12 Apr. 2026 That’s Racine’s journey, completely reopening, obliterating, and doing surgery on the wound. — Juan A. Ramírez, Vogue, 8 May 2026 In the East, that means obliterating the recent past and starting anew in pursuit of communist utopian dreams under the already alarmingly heavy hand of the Russians. — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 15 May 2026 The entire lighting system can be neutralized by flipping a single switch, obliterating all visibility except for a spotlight on the enemy’s crotch. — Dahlia Gallin Ramirez, New Yorker, 9 June 2026 Mikko Rantanen was obliterating Jared Spurgeon behind the net, separating him from the puck and nearly separating his head from his body. — Mark Lazerus, New York Times, 1 May 2026 Near the speed of light, special relativity wreaks havoc on clocks and time, obliterating the concept of simultaneity among observers traveling at different speeds. — Peter Gosselin, Harpers Magazine, 30 June 2026 If the 38 days of devastating air strikes that began on 28 February failed to bring Tehran to heel, what difference would obliterating a few more targets make? — The Week Uk, TheWeek, 23 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obliterating
  1. eradicating
  2. erasing
  3. abolishing
  4. destroying
Verb
  • When William and his brother, Prince Harry, were young boys, the former Princess of Wales would regularly take them to homeless shelters, and eradicating homelessness has become a cornerstone of the future king’s royal work.
    — Rachel Burchfield, InStyle, 30 June 2026
  • The path through impostor syndrome is not about eradicating the doubt.
    — Karyn Gallant, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026
Definition of eradicating
Verb
  • The birthright citizenship ruling was a win for democracy — and a warning about erasing history, argues columnist Anita Chabria.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2026
  • Love is the capacity to hold difference without fragmentation, to bring parts into relationship without erasing their uniqueness and to align intelligence with constructive becoming.
    — Pravir Malik, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
Definition of erasing
Verb
  • Many of its candidates support entirely eliminating immigration enforcement, abolishing the police, sweeping wealth redistribution and expanding government ownership over significant sectors of the economy.
    — Bobby Zirkin, Baltimore Sun, 29 June 2026
  • But how does that -- how does abolishing prisons or having open borders fit into that?
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 June 2026
Definition of abolishing
Verb
  • Mexican fruit flies are one of the world’s most destructive pests when laying their eggs, destroying or damaging fruit such as apples, grapefruits, avocados, peaches and pears, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
    — Kori McNair, Los Angeles Times, 30 June 2026
  • But Blue Origin suffered a major setback in May when one of its New Glenn rockets abruptly exploded on the launchpad, destroying vital infrastructure that will take months to rebuild.
    — Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 30 June 2026
Definition of destroying

Browse Nearby Words

obliterates
obliterating
obliteration
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Obliterating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obliterating. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on obliterating

Nglish: Translation of obliterating for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gambol

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All