Annihilation
/əˌnaɪ.əˈleɪ.ʃən/noun
The act of completely destroying or causing something to cease to exist.
Did you know?Annihilation comes from a Latin verb built on nihil, meaning “nothing,” so its original force was less “damage” and more “make it vanish into nothingness.”
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
annihilare
“to reduce to nothing; to make void”
Late Latin
Latin
annihilatio
“a reducing to nothing”
14th Century
Middle English
annihilacioun
“the act of making something nothing or void”
16th Century
English
annihilation
“complete destruction or nullification”
Modern English
English
annihilation
“the act or state of being utterly destroyed or wiped out”