ikˈstiŋgwish, -wēsh, chiefly in pres part -wəsh; ÷-ŋw- verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
Etymology: Latin exstinguere, extinguere (from ex- ex- (I) + stinguere to extinguish) + English -ish (as in abolish ); akin to Latin in stigare to urge on, incite — more at stick
transitive verb
1.
a. : to cause (as a fire or light) to cease burning : put out : quench
extinguishing the flames
threw water on the glowing coals to extinguish them
the lamps were all extinguished
b.
(1) : to bring (as life or hope) to an end : make an end of : cause to die out : do away with entirely : blot out of existence : wipe out : make extinct : destroy , annihilate
a way of life which one might expect to have been extinguished almost two generations ago — E.H.Spicer
death will not extinguish us — W.L.Sullivan
extinguishing the last glimmer of hope
: suppress (an institution or an official position)
extinguishing monasteries by an act of the king
whose office of paymaster of works was extinguished by these efforts — John Craig
(2) : to reduce to silence or ineffectiveness : choke off : stifle , smother
a very nearly extinguished voice — Elizabeth Bowen
extinguishing his opponents with a single word
: make powerless or inoperative : crush , check
a point at which the popular will is extinguished — T.E.Utley
(3) : to cause extinction of (a conditioned response)
the more specific a response the easier it is to extinguish it — Ralph Linton
c. : to cause the brightness of to appear relatively dim or to disappear altogether (as by setting next to a superior brilliancy) : cause to seem lackluster or tawdry : eclipse
a glittering costume that extinguished all the others
her face looked pale and extinguished, as if dimmed by the rich red of her dress — Edith Wharton
2.
a. : to cause (as a claim or right) to be void : make legally nonexistent : nullify , abolish
titles to the land had not been extinguished — C.G.Bowers
b. : to get rid of (a debt or other liability) by payment or other compensatory adjustment — compare suspend , transfer
intransitive verb
archaic : to become extinguished : die out
Synonyms: see abolish , crush