as in murder
the intentional and unlawful taking of another person's life
the mafia boss ordered a rubout as casually as you might order a pizza
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in to destroy
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of
aerial bombs rubbed out the oil refinery
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to assassinate
to put to death deliberately
an elaborate setup to rub out rival mobsters
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to eradicate
to destroy all traces of
a promise to rub out the city's drug trade
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rubout
Gail Sheehy,
Vanity Fair,
20 Feb. 2026
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
See All Example Sentences for rubout
Noun
Investigators suspect Robinson wanted the rubout.
—
Gail Sheehy,
Vanity Fair,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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
See All Example Sentences for rubout
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rubout
Noun
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Prosecutors allege the pistol was used in a 2021 Chicago murder and later in the shooting of a rival gang member.
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Liar, marking a reunion between Seo Hyun-jin and Yoo Yeon-seok as a criminal profiler and a corporate attorney on opposing sides of a murder case tied to a powerful conglomerate, also continues through the month.
Verb
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National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez, the brother of acting President Delcy Rodríguez, said on Sunday that more than 12,000 people have been displaced by the earthquakes and 774 buildings have been damaged or destroyed, including hospitals.
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There's nothing more quintessential to being a kid than playing Little League baseball, but on July Fourth, 2025, along with so much more, the Little League fields of Hill Country were destroyed, along with the innocence of thousands of kids who live here.
Verb
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Martin Sheen is the Army captain tasked with going on a secret mission to Cambodia to assassinate a special forces officer (Marlon Brando) who's gone rogue and might actually be nuts.
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Louis Farrakhan, who is now 93, stepped into the organization’s leadership vacuum shortly after Malcolm X was assassinated in 1965.
Verb
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Incomplete or inappropriate antibiotic courses amplify this effect by exposing bacteria to sub-therapeutic drug concentrations without eradicating them.
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Building new sterile fly production facilities in the Southwest helped eradicate the flies in that region too, and by 1966, the US was declared officially screwworm-free.
Noun
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Investigators said Edmond purchased the firearm in Georgia just 36 days before it was allegedly used in the homicide.
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Quigley has pleaded not guilty to motor vehicle homicide in the December 2023 Woburn crash that fatally injured 37‑year‑old Special Olympian Angelo Schettino, who died a month later.
Verb
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However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.
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After all, plenty of cocktail enthusiasts already complain about mosquitoes ruining a summer evening.
Verb
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Earle is there to be supportive, and to slay a dragon in her best copyright-dodging Red Sonja fit.
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Jace is then slain by enemy arrows.
Verb
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By the time the boundary issues were partially corrected in the 1960s, both the cemetery and the surrounding Black community had been largely erased from public memory.
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Still, state environmental officials and weather experts say the rainfall deficits dating back to last fall have not been completely erased.
Cite this Entry
“Rubout.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rubout. Accessed 3 Jul. 2026.
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