Extinction

/ɪkˈstɪŋkʃən/ · noun

Meaning

The action of making or becoming extinct; annihilation..

Definitions by Sense

1. The action of making or becoming extinct; annihilation.
2. (astronomy) The absorption or scattering of electromagnetic radiation emitted by astronomical objects by intervening dust and gas before it reaches the observer.
3. (pathology) The inability to perceive multiple stimuli simultaneously.
4. (psychology) The fading of a conditioned response over time if it is not reinforced.

Example Sentences

Thirteen long centuries have elapsed since the extinction of the last Zoroastrian Empire[…]

Their lives were short; all were condemned by the early 1930s, presumably because, like most classes of G.S.W.R. engines, their small numbers invited extinction under any comprehensive programme of standardisation.

The extinction of a species once so numerous seemed incredible.

Dr. Manuel: You're wasting your time. The age of humanity is over. Our extinction is inevitable.

Phoenix and Lubbock are both caught in severe drought, and it is going to get much worse. We may see many such [dust] storms in the decades ahead, along with species extinctions, radical disturbance of ecosystems, and intensified social conflict over land and water. Welcome to the Anthropocene, the epoch when humans have become a major geological and climatic force.

On the East and West Coast Main Lines in the 1950s/60s, for example, we saw the extinction of intermediate stations in order to create the same sort of accelerations that IRP is now promising. Back then, the priority was faster main line services, with wayside/intermediate stations paying the ultimate price.

In Perthshire, the Aberdeenshire catchments of Deeside and Donside, in Moray and Nairnshire to the north-east, the populations are in low single figures, putting them on the brink of local extinction.

Synonyms for extinction

Antonyms for extinction

Related Words

Word Forms

• extinctions

Usage Notes

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