rub out
verb
rubbed out; rubbing out; rubs out
transitive verb
1
: to obliterate by or as if by rubbing
2
: to destroy completely
specifically : kill, murder
somebody rubbed him out … with a twenty-two 
Raymond Chandler
Raymond Chandler rubout
ˈrəb-ˌau̇t 
noun 
Synonyms
- annihilate
- cream
- decimate
- demolish
- desolate
- destroy
- devastate
- do in
- extinguish
- nuke
- pull down
- pulverize
- raze
- ruin
- shatter
- smash
- tear down
- total
- vaporize
- waste
- wrack
- wreck
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
aerial bombs rubbed out the oil refinery an elaborate setup to rub out rival mobsters
Recent Examples on the Web The resort can arrange a local masseuse to rub out all that daring inside the comfort of your cabin. Rina Nehdar, Travel + Leisure, 4 Mar. 2022 The man, Eric Charles Maund, whose family runs Volkswagen and Toyota dealerships in and around Austin, is alleged to have hired the trio to rub out Holly Williams, 33, and William Lanway, 36, in March 2020, police and prosecutors said. NBC News, 13 Dec. 2021 His mission, ostensibly, is to retrieve the sword and rub out Akemi, who’s just turned 21 and unknowingly inherited the Kawa crime family empire. Richard Kuipers, Variety, 30 Aug. 2021 For at-home maintenance, Away (which doesn’t cover superficial markings under warranty), recommends using a Magic Eraser sponge to rub out scuffs and scratches, while Rimowa suggests using isopropyl alcohol as a cleaning and restoring agent. Laura Neilson, WSJ, 18 Mar. 2021 Robby Fabbri put in a hard shift to set up the goal; Nikita Zadorov tried to rub out Fabbri along the boards, but Fabbri refused to be denied space. Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press, 28 Feb. 2021 Exotic has served a year of his more than 20-year sentence for attempting to hire a hitman to rub out Baskin. Ben Feuerherd, Fox News, 21 Jan. 2021 Use a dry erase marker instead of a Sharpie when designing to easily rub out any mistakes or errant marks. Beth Segal, cleveland, 15 Oct. 2020 An extensive torture campaign has been documented by human rights workers, intended to rub out any sense of disloyalty from the military. Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, 21 Jan. 2020 See More
Rina Nehdar, Travel + Leisure, 4 Mar. 2022 The man, Eric Charles Maund, whose family runs Volkswagen and Toyota dealerships in and around Austin, is alleged to have hired the trio to rub out Holly Williams, 33, and William Lanway, 36, in March 2020, police and prosecutors said. NBC News, 13 Dec. 2021 His mission, ostensibly, is to retrieve the sword and rub out Akemi, who’s just turned 21 and unknowingly inherited the Kawa crime family empire. Richard Kuipers, Variety, 30 Aug. 2021 For at-home maintenance, Away (which doesn’t cover superficial markings under warranty), recommends using a Magic Eraser sponge to rub out scuffs and scratches, while Rimowa suggests using isopropyl alcohol as a cleaning and restoring agent. Laura Neilson, WSJ, 18 Mar. 2021 Robby Fabbri put in a hard shift to set up the goal; Nikita Zadorov tried to rub out Fabbri along the boards, but Fabbri refused to be denied space. Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press, 28 Feb. 2021 Exotic has served a year of his more than 20-year sentence for attempting to hire a hitman to rub out Baskin. Ben Feuerherd, Fox News, 21 Jan. 2021 Use a dry erase marker instead of a Sharpie when designing to easily rub out any mistakes or errant marks. Beth Segal, cleveland, 15 Oct. 2020 An extensive torture campaign has been documented by human rights workers, intended to rub out any sense of disloyalty from the military. Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, 21 Jan. 2020 See More Word History
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
rubbed out
verb
1
as in destroyed
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of aerial bombs rubbed out the oil refinery Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- destroyed
- ruined
- demolished
- shattered
- wrecked
- devastated
- smashed
- pulled down
- damaged
- tore down
- wasted
- overcame
- eroded
- did in
- pulverized
- annihilated
- vaporized
- extinguished
- decimated
- totaled
- razed
- wracked
- creamed
- crippled
- marred
- ravaged
- washed out
- killed
- removed
- desolated
- defeated
- crushed
- wiped out
- blasted
- dismantled
- broke
- injured
- nuked
- subdued
- blew up
- licked
- blotted out
- trimmed
- conquered
- cut down
- totalled
- impaired
- took down
- triumphed (over)
- dissolved
- spoiled
- whipped
- deteriorated
- disintegrated
- mastered
- surmounted
- mutilated
- harmed
- killed off
- thrashed
- clobbered
- prevailed (over)
- disfigured
- beat
- routed
- mangled
- overmatched
- wore (away)
- bested
- scotched
- eradicated
- swept (away)
- won (against)
- defaced
- trounced
- stamped (out)
- assassinated
- obliterated
- scoured
- havocked
- took out
- slaughtered
- disassembled
- gutted
- dilapidated
- vitiated
- plundered
- murdered
- dynamited
- sacked
- executed
- liquidated
- unmade
- looted
- rooted (out)
- trampled
- exterminated
- vandalized
- snuffed (out)
- expunged
- drubbed
- dispatched
- spoilt
- extirpated
- effaced
- undid
- unbuilt
- overbore
- trashed
- walloped
- despoiled
- zapped
- massacred
- skunked
- slew
- butchered
- pillaged
- felled
- mowed (down)
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- built
- constructed
- raised
- erected
- set up
- fixed
- brought about
- created
- repaired
- reared
- put up
- produced
- made
- shaped
- formed
- invented
- established
- assembled
- manufactured
- organized
- protected
- founded
- forged
- molded
- patched
- fashioned
- revamped
- framed
- fabricated
- saved
- constituted
- reconditioned
- preserved
- instituted
- mended
- doctored
- restored
- rebuilt
- reconstructed
- conserved
- fathered
- renovated
- remodeled
2
as in assassinated
to put to death deliberately an elaborate setup to rub out rival mobsters Synonyms & Similar Words
- assassinated
- murdered
- bumped off
- knocked off
- executed
- put away
- took out
- killed
- dispatched
- got
- whacked
- did in
- neutralized
- snuffed
- destroyed
- slew
- liquidated
- cut down
- terminated
- shot down
- slaughtered
- blew away
- carried off
- blotted out
- wiped out
- iced
- croaked
- offed
- did away with
- claimed
- shot
- zapped
- eliminated
- smote
- eradicated
- butchered
- massacred
- felled
- annihilated
- mowed (down)
- exterminated
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- raised
- revived
- restored
- resurrected
- animated
- resuscitated
3
as in eradicated
to destroy all traces of a promise to rub out the city's drug trade Synonyms & Similar Words
- eradicated
- erased
- wiped out
- abolished
- blotted out
- destroyed
- blacked out
- stamped (out)
- obliterated
- swept (away)
- annihilated
- canceled
- exterminated
- rooted (out)
- liquidated
- cleaned (up)
- expunged
- snuffed (out)
- shattered
- extirpated
- effaced
- demolished
- cancelled
- tore down
- killed
- ruined
- ravaged
- discarded
- dismantled
- killed off
- flattened
- consumed
- decimated
- blew up
- devastated
- wrecked
- threw out
- wasted
- razed
- smashed
- dissolved
- finished
- mowed (down)
- dashed
- fragmented
- powdered
- splintered
- pulverized
- totaled
- doomed
- ejected
- devoured
- blasted
- zapped
- expelled
- dynamited
- atomized
- jettisoned
- excised
- terminated
- cut
- totalled
- ditched
- ousted
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- protected
- saved
- preserved
- built
- constructed
- created
- shaped
- made
- formed
- manufactured
- fixed
- forged
- restored
- rebuilt
- repaired
- reconstructed
- fashioned
- framed
- renewed
- conserved
- fabricated
- revamped
- renovated
- patched
- reconditioned
- mended
- behenic acid
- behest
- behests
- behight
- mushily
- mushiness
- mushinesses
- mushing
- mushmelon
- mushquash
- mushrat
- mushrebiyeh
- mushroom
- mushroom anchor
- mushroom body
- mushroom cap
- mushroom chair
- mushroom cloud
- mushroom coral
- mushroom jellyfish
- mushroom mite
- mushroom pin
- mushroom root rot
- mushroom steamer
- mushroom valve