wipe out

/waɪp aʊt/◆phrasal verb

to destroy completely

The hurricane wiped out the entire coastal town.

The hurricane completely destroyed the entire coastal town.

general

To destroy or eliminate something completely

The new policy wiped out the company's old procedures.

The new policy completely replaced the company's old procedures.

He wiped out his savings on a bad investment.

He lost all his savings due to a bad investment.

Can be used literally (physical destruction) or figuratively (financial, emotional, or systematic elimination).

Sports

To defeat someone completely in a competition or contest

The champion wiped out all opponents in the tournament.

The champion defeated all opponents in the tournament.

Common in sports and competitive contexts.

Collocations

wipe out completelyto destroy or eliminate entirelywipe out competitionto defeat all rivals

to defeat someone easily

to pay off a debt completely

Be mindful of context—'wipe out' can mean physical destruction or metaphorical elimination.

Use 'wipe out' for complete destruction or elimination, not partial damage.

From 'wipe' (to clean or remove) + 'out' (completely). The phrase emerged in the mid-20th century.

Can be used both literally (e.g., natural disasters) and figuratively (e.g., financial losses).

wipe

to clean or remove

root

out

completely

particle

English Dictionary