Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “extirpate” come from?

Extirpate comes from Latin exstirpo, formed from the prefix ex- and root stirps meaning "stem" or "trunk," ultimately tracing to Proto-Indo-European eǵ- meaning "to drive out."

extirpate (English): To clear an area of roots and stumps; To pull up...

Definitions

  1. To clear an area of roots and stumps; To pull up...

Ancestry of “extirpate”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinexstirpatusuprooted; eradicated, extirpated
2Latinexstirpō—
3Latinstirpsrootstock; the lowest part of the trunk of a...
4Proto-Indo-Europeanster-sterile, infertile

Words derived from “extirpate”

  • extirpative
  • extirpator
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ster- →