Annul
/əˈnʌl/noun
To declare something legally void or cancel it out.
Did you know?Annul ultimately comes from Latin roots meaning 'to make into nothing,' and that same null-root later gave English the word null—pure emptiness in legal form.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
annullāre
“to make void, cancel”
Late Latin
Latin
ad nullum
“to nothing, to zero”
Old French
Old French
annuler
“to annul, cancel, make void”
14th Century
Middle English
annulen
“to make void, invalidate”
Modern English
English
annul
“to declare legally void or cancel”
Explore more surprising origins