annihilation

/ənaɪəˈleɪʃɪn/

/ənaɪəˈleɪʃɪn/

Other forms: annihilations

Annihilation is the total destruction of something. In World War II, our nuclear bombs resulted in the annihilation of Hiroshima.

If you spill milk on your textbooks, it won’t result in annihilation — this word is much more serious. After an annihilation, there's nothing left but total, horrific destruction, like a wild fire completely wiping out a forest or a tsunami sweeping away a seaside town. This word has an end-of-the-world feel to it: many religions have stories of annihilation of some sort, resulting in the end of everything.

Definitions of annihilation

1. noun

   destruction by annihilating something
   synonyms: obliteration

   types:

   atomisation, atomization

   annihilation by reducing something to atoms

   pulverisation, pulverization

   annihilation by pulverizing something

   vaporisation, vaporization

   annihilation by vaporizing something

   type of:

   destruction, devastation

   the termination of something by causing so much damage to it that it cannot be repaired or no longer exists
2. noun

   total destruction
   “bomb tests resulted in the annihilation of the atoll”

   synonyms: disintegration

   types:

   extermination, extinction

   complete annihilation

   type of:

   demolition, destruction, wipeout

   an event (or the result of an event) that completely destroys something