RUBBING OUT Synonyms: 210 Similar and Opposite Words

rubbing out

verb

present participle of rub out

as in destroying

to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of aerial bombs rubbed out the oil refinery

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in murdering

to put to death deliberately an elaborate setup to rub out rival mobsters

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in eradicating

to destroy all traces of a promise to rub out the city's drug trade

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 rubbing out Also on the trail is a gangster named Clyde (John Magaro), who’s been sent to redo the job of rubbing out the mysteriously undead Ida. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 4 Mar. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for rubbing out

Verb

After destroying much of Gaza and killing tens of thousands of Palestinians, Israel has regained military control of nearly 70 percent of the strip.

— Dalia Dassa Kaye, Foreign Affairs, 27 Oct. 2026
But if firms lean on AI to cut lower-level work, the risk is destroying the very avenue of apprenticeship that produces future senior associates and managers.

— Tim Brackney, Forbes.com, 26 Oct. 2026

Definition of destroying

Verb

The Beijing propaganda machine has been busy eradicating the truth about the Tiananmen Square Massacre for nearly forty years.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 21 Oct. 2026
But somehow, in the midst of all this frat-boy revelry, Ilya is able to outline his vision for the future, one in which AI will have solved numerous human problems, including eradicating not only cancer but also loneliness and unhappiness.

— Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of eradicating

Verb

The song is a cautionary tale about a brothel in New Orleans known for ruining many poor girls.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2026
As wet electrodes get thicker, the liquid binder migrates unevenly during drying, ruining the battery‘s structure.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of ruining

Verb

Washington hoped that assassinating Khamenei would prompt a mass antigovernment uprising.

— Narges Bajoghli, Foreign Affairs, 9 Oct. 2026
Tyler Robinson, the man accused of assassinating conservative activist Charlie Kirk, will stand trial after a Utah judge ruled Tuesday that prosecutors presented enough evidence to move forward on all seven charges against him.

— Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of assassinating

Verb

Cincinnati kept pouring it on after erasing the 13-0 deficit.

— ABC News, ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026
In the bottom of the sixth, Sal Frelick led off the inning with a lefty-on-lefty solo homer off Ian Seymour in a nine-pitch at-bat, completely erasing the deficit.

— Ryan Morik OutKick, FOXNews.com, 25 Oct. 2026

Definition of erasing

Verb

Following the attack, the Israeli military began forcing Palestinian families to leave their homes in parts of the city as forces began demolishing homes and businesses.

— Oren Liebermann, CNN Money, 27 Oct. 2026
Photographs from Hebron showed Israeli bulldozers demolishing at least one Palestinian building.

— Chantal Da Silva, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2026