Annihilate and Destroy

Annihilate

Annihilate verb - To destroy all traces of.
Usage example: the family's attempts to annihilate the roach population in their apartment had met with little success

Destroy is a synonym for annihilate in eliminate topic. In some cases you can use "Destroy" instead a verb "Annihilate", when it comes to topics like end, eradicate, obliterate, wipe out. popular alternative

Nearby Words: annihilation, annihilating

Destroy

Destroy verb - To bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of.
Usage example: their poor scores on the final exam destroyed any chance they might have had to pass the course

Annihilate is a synonym for destroy in demolish topic. You can use "Annihilate" instead a verb "Destroy", if it concerns topics such as eliminate, end, ruin, eradicate. popular alternative

Nearby Words: destroyed, destroyer, destroying

Common collocations

humanity annihilate humanity destroy humanity
life annihilate life destroy life
civilization annihilate civilization destroy civilization
system annihilate system destroy system
Other words: base, village, universe, earth, world, ship, planet, city, enemy, everyone, enemies, planets, cities.

Both words in one sentence

  • At the end of the second game, the Katuri manage to destroy Earth and annihilate the United Fleet.With humanity all but destroyed, Antaris alone regrouped the United Fleet and began to lead them back to Apocalypse, the only place the Katuri could never conquer.
  • Western Animation / Space Ghost The title device has a weapon that it uses to annihilate a building and destroy the occupant.
  • In other instances, this trope is played straight - the kids talk about how the Yeerks would "destroy" them and their families, and so on, also using "annihilate" as a euphemism.
Cite this Source
Destroy and Annihilate. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 16, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/annihilate/destroy
Annihilate & Destroy. N.p., 2016. Web. 16 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/annihilate/destroy>.
Destroy or Annihilate. 2016. Accessed August 16, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/annihilate/destroy.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "annihilate" and "destroy" have occurred on timeline