eliminate

[ ih-lim-uh-neyt ]
/ ɪˈlɪm əˌneɪt /

verb (used with object), e·lim·i·nat·ed, e·lim·i·nat·ing.

to remove or get rid of, especially as being in some way undesirable: to eliminate risks; to eliminate hunger.
to omit, especially as being unimportant or irrelevant; leave out: I have eliminated all statistical tables, which are of interest only to the specialist.
to remove from further consideration or competition, especially by defeating in a contest.
to eradicate or kill: to eliminate the enemy.
Physiology. to void or expel from an organism.
Mathematics. to remove (a quantity) from an equation by elimination.

Origin of eliminate

1560–70; 1915–20 for def 4; < Latin ēlīminātus turned out of doors (past participle of ēlīmināre), equivalent to ē- e-1 + līmin-, stem of līmen threshold + -ātus -ate1

OTHER WORDS FROM eliminate

Example sentences from the Web for eliminate

British Dictionary definitions for eliminate

eliminate
/ (ɪˈlɪmɪˌneɪt) /

verb (tr)

to remove or take out; get rid of
to reject as trivial or irrelevant; omit from consideration
to remove (a competitor, team, etc) from a contest, usually by defeat
slang to murder in a cold-blooded manner
physiol to expel (waste matter) from the body
maths to remove (an unknown variable) from two or more simultaneous equations

Derived forms of eliminate

Word Origin for eliminate

C16: from Latin ēlīmināre to turn out of the house, from e- out + līmen threshold

usage for eliminate

Eliminate is sometimes wrongly used to talk about avoiding the repetition of something undesirable: we must prevent (not eliminate) further mistakes of this kind