Eradicates

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Completely removes or destroys something so that it no longer exists
2. Eliminates something fully and leaves no trace behind
3. Totally gets rid of a problem or entity, ensuring it is gone for good

Etymology: The image at the heart of "eradicates" is a plant being pulled up by its roots. The Latin verb "ērādīcō" was built from "ē," meaning "out," and "rādīx," meaning "root," so to eradicate something was literally to pull it out by the root. That root is the same one that gives English "radish," which is an unexpected family link for a word about total removal. The Latin verb's perfect passive participle, "ērādīcātus," was borrowed into Middle English as "eradicat," which was then given the English verb ending -en to form "eradicaten." The "-ate" ending of the older form was once an adjective-forming suffix, so the verb grew out of an adjective before settling into the verb we use now. The sense of thoroughness is built into the picture itself. A weed that snaps off above ground will often regrow, but one pulled with its root intact is gone, and the Latin metaphor carried that idea of complete removal into figurative use for diseases, abuses and other problems.

Synonyms: eliminates, abolishes, exterminates, wipes out

Antonyms: creates, establishes, introduces