verb

annihilate

uh-NY-uh-layt/əˈnaɪəleɪt/

To destroy something so completely that its former state ceases.

The industrial press annihilates the clay model, reducing it to tiny fragments.

An industrial press completely crushes a simple clay model into dust and tiny fragments, with the intact model shown in a small before inset; no people or weapons.

Etymology

anLatinto

+nihilLatinnothing

+ateLatinpast-participle ending

“To” and “nothing” give the literal idea of reducing something to nonexistence. The verb applies that image to destruction so thorough that nothing meaningful remains.

In context

Oculus Imperia1:07

kill him with your first shot utterly annihilate him with your first strike

The Betrayal at Calth: The Complete History (Warhammer 40,000 & Horus Heresy Lore)

More examples

The defending champions annihilated their opponents in the final.
A particle and its antiparticle can annihilate when they meet.
The repeated attacks are annihilating what remains of the town.

Forms

annihilate · annihilates · annihilated · annihilating

annihilation noun — Complete destruction or elimination.

Similar words

destroy: Does not always imply such complete elimination.
obliterate: Emphasizes erasing every visible trace of something.