What does obliterate mean?
Word: Obliterate
Part of Speech: Verb
Meaning: Obliterate means to wipe something out completely, so that no trace of it remains.
Synonyms: erase, wipe out, demolish
Antonyms: create, build, preserve
How do you spell obliterate?
Syllables: ob - lit - er - ate
Tricky part: The weak vowel after the t is an e. Many students write oblitarate.
Watch out for: oblitarate, oblitrate
Memory tip: The vowel you barely hear after the t is an e, never an a: think of e for erase.
Obliterate in a sentence
Example 1: The heavy rain obliterated the chalk drawings on the playground.
Example 2: One big wave can obliterate footprints on a sandy beach.
Example 3: She tried to obliterate the ink stain with correction fluid.
Fun Fact
In The Obliteration Room by the Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, first shown in Australia in 2002, children cover an all-white room with thousands of coloured dot stickers until the white is almost obliterated.
Practise the CREST Way
Spellacadabra
Choose the misspelt word:
a) decorate
b) illustrate
c) oblitterate
d) celebrate
Show answer
c) oblitterate. Obliterate has a single t after the li.
Word Puzzle
Match the words in the two lists:
1. obliterate 2. abandon 3. conceal a. desert b. destroy c. hide
a) 1-c, 2-a, 3-b
b) 1-b, 2-a, 3-c
c) 1-a, 2-c, 3-b
d) 1-a, 2-b, 3-c
Show answer
b) 1-b, 2-a, 3-c. To obliterate is to destroy, to abandon is to desert and to conceal is to hide.
Jumble Tumble
What is the meaning of the word that can be formed from the given letters?
tbaroeltie
a) to say how good something is
b) to make something look more beautiful
c) to cover or ruin something so badly that it can no longer be seen
d) to share something out equally
Show answer
c) to cover or ruin something so badly that it can no longer be seen. These ten letters rebuild into obliterate; decorate, distribute and praise use other letters.
Sound Check
In which word is 'ate' pronounced differently?
a) create
b) climate
c) translate
d) obliterate
Show answer
b) climate. In climate the ending is a weak sound, like the et in pocket; the other three end like late.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. On a beach, what is most likely to obliterate a sandcastle?
a) a sun hat
b) a beach towel
c) a big wave
d) a sea shell
Show answer
c) a big wave
2. Which phrase could replace obliterated in 'The fog obliterated our view of the hills'?
a) improved
b) brightened
c) blotted out
d) painted
Show answer
c) blotted out
