RUBBED OUT Synonyms: 211 Similar and Opposite Words

rubbed out

verb

past tense of rub out

as in destroyed

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in assassinated

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in eradicated

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

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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 rubbed out This treacherous gang has phenomenally rubbed out many signatures of independence in a very short time. — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 14 June 2026 But an Irish knock-on rubbed out a try for Jack Conan, and the second chance was turned over by Mann. — ABC News, 6 Mar. 2026 No Mob boss, cheerfully decreeing that an inconvenient witness be rubbed out, could be more resolute. — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for rubbed out

Verb

The fire started in the 2300 block of Pickett Road and destroyed five structures, according to Cal Fire.

— Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 29 Aug. 2026
Almost 50 homes and other structures have been destroyed so far; there have been several injuries, and one of Tibbetts’s neighbors lost 20 German shepherds.

— Anya Kamenetz, Curbed, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of destroyed

Verb

After Kirk was assassinated, the Congressional Black Caucus put out a statement condemning political violence.

— Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 1 Sep. 2026
The judge also cited retaliation against people who were critical of Charlie Kirk after the Turning Point USA co-founder was assassinated last September.

— ABC News, ABC News, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of assassinated

Verb

In 1979, the United States became the first country to declare polio eradicated following years of mass vaccinations; in subsequent decades, many other countries reported similar results.

— Eli Cahan, Rolling Stone, 21 Aug. 2026
Now, there is a constant obsession over energy levels and management that has eradicated the previous ‘flat out’ approach to racing.

— Luke Smith, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of eradicated

Verb

Three winemakers earlier this month filed suit against the owner of Hundred Acre Wines, Jayson Woodbridge, and his company alleging that smoke from the wildfire ruined their harvests, the Press Democrat reported.

— Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 29 Aug. 2026
Authorities in Napa County have charged a man for allegedly setting the 2025 Pickett Fire near Calistoga, which burned thousands of acres of Wine Country and ruined grape harvests because of the smoke.

— Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of ruined

Verb

Lorca was murdered in 1936 during the Spanish Civil War by followers of Francisco Franco, and his body remains undiscovered to this day.

— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 1 Sep. 2026
Ideologies held by Kirk and others like him, Miles said, are the reason Black people have been violently murdered.

— Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of murdered

Verb

The child’s right to know her own identity and history should be guaranteed, but for adoptees under these circumstances or trafficking victims, that right is erased.

— Ashoka, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2026
Sam Howell threw two fourth-quarter touchdown passes and had a tying 2-point conversion run for the Cowboys (2-1), who erased a 15-point deficit but missed out on their first undefeated preseason in 20 years.

— ABC News, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of erased

Verb

Now it will be demolished and replaced as part of a $250 million sports complex project.

— Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026
After the property crisis cuts off family support, a filmmaker returns from the US to find his home demolished by a bankrupt father who once shaped Shenzhen’s skyline.

— Matthew Carey, Deadline, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of demolished

Verb

According to the United Nations, executions have surged over the last six months, with at least 56 people executed on national security charges since mid-March — including 27 linked to protests earlier this year.

— Greg Myre, NPR, 28 Aug. 2026
Code executed during that interruption altered the prediction machinery before the processor could use it.

— Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 28 Aug. 2026