WordWeb Online

1. (psychology) of a conditioned response; caused to die out because of the absence or withdrawal of reinforcement

1. Put out, as of fires, flames, or lights
   "Too big to be extinguished at once, the forest fires at best could be contained";
   - snuff out, quench
    
2. Extinguish by crushing
   - stub, stub out, crush out, press out
    
3. Terminate, end, or take out
   "Socialism extinguished these archaic customs";
   - eliminate, get rid of, do away with
    
4. Kill in large numbers
   "the plague extinguished an entire population";
   - eliminate, annihilate, eradicate, wipe out, decimate, carry off
    
5. Put an end to; kill
   "The Nazis extinguished the life of many Jewish children";
   - snuff out [informal]

See also: destroyed

Type of: destroy, destruct, kill, spifflicate [Brit, informal], spiflicate [Brit, informal], uncreate [literary]

Encyclopedia: Extinguish