Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'eliminate' holds a significant place in our vocabulary, signifying the act of removing or getting rid of something entirely. Its cultural importance is evident in various contexts, from sports (éliminer in French, meaning 'to eliminate' in a sports tournament) to hygiene (अपवाद in Hindi, translating to 'eliminate' waste or impurities).
Understanding the translation of 'eliminate' in different languages can broaden your cultural horizons and enhance your communication skills. For instance, in Spanish, 'eliminar' is used to express the removal of barriers or obstacles, while in German, 'beseitigen' implies a more comprehensive form of eradication.
Moreover, the word's historical context is intriguing. During the Cold War, the term 'eliminate' was often used to describe the desired outcome of nuclear arms reduction talks. This highlights the power of language in shaping global events and policies.
Join us as we explore the various translations of 'eliminate', delving into the nuances of this simple yet profound word. Whether you're a language enthusiast, a traveler, or a professional communicator, this list is sure to enrich your linguistic repertoire.
Afrikaans | uitskakel | ||
The word "uitskakel" in Afrikaans is derived from the Dutch word "uitschakelen", which means "to turn off, disable, or deactivate." | |||
Amharic | አስወግድ | ||
The word "አስወግድ" can also mean "to remove" or "to get rid of" in Amharic. | |||
Hausa | kawar | ||
In Hausa, the word "kawar" is thought to derive from the Proto-West-Chadic root "*kwâr" meaning "to cast or throw away." | |||
Igbo | kpochapu | ||
"Kpochapu" in Igbo also means "to make an incision" or "to cut something open". | |||
Malagasy | manafoana | ||
Although commonly translated as "eliminate," the word "manafoana" can be derived from the word "fana," meaning "to cease to exist" and the prefix "mana-" indicating reciprocity between two persons. | |||
Nyanja (Chichewa) | kuchotsa | ||
The etymology of the Nyanja word 'kuchotsa' ('eliminate') is likely to be from the Proto-Bantu root *-cotsa ('to cut off'), also found in the word 'kudula' ('to cut'). | |||
Shona | bvisa | ||
"Bvisa" in Shona can also mean "to erase" or "to remove". | |||
Somali | baabi'i | ||
The word "baabi'i" has various meanings, including "eliminate", "exterminate", "eradicate", and "annihilate". | |||
Sesotho | tlosa | ||
The word "tlosa" in Sesotho can also mean "to finish" or "to complete". | |||
Swahili | kuondoa | ||
In Swahili, the word "kuondoa" can also mean "to remove", "to get rid of", or "to take away". | |||
Xhosa | phelisa | ||
Xhosa word 'phelisa' can also mean 'to get rid of bad luck'. | |||
Yoruba | imukuro | ||
The word 'ìmukúró' can also mean 'to get rid of a person or thing that is no longer wanted'. | |||
Zulu | ukususa | ||
The Zulu word 'ukususa' also means 'to remove' or 'to take away'. | |||
Bambara | ka bɔ | ||
Ewe | ɖee ɖa | ||
Kinyarwanda | kurandura | ||
Lingala | kolongola | ||
Luganda | okujjamu | ||
Sepedi | fediša | ||
Twi (Akan) | yi firi hɔ | ||
Arabic | القضاء | ||
"القضاء" can also mean "destiny" or "fate" in Arabic. | |||
Hebrew | לְחַסֵל | ||
The Hebrew word לְחַסֵל, meaning “eliminate,” also refers to the ritual slaughtering of kosher animals. | |||
Pashto | ختمول | ||
The Pashto word "ختمول" also means "to reject" or "to abandon". | |||
Arabic | القضاء | ||
"القضاء" can also mean "destiny" or "fate" in Arabic. |
Albanian | eleminoj | ||
Eleminoj is derived from the Latin word "eliminare", meaning "to banish", "to expel", or "to remove". | |||
Basque | ezabatu | ||
"Ezabatu" also means "to delete" or "to cancel" in Basque. | |||
Catalan | eliminar | ||
The word "eliminar" in Catalan is derived from the Latin word "eliminare", which means "to remove" or "to exclude". | |||
Croatian | eliminirati | ||
In Croatia, 'eliminirati' is also used in the context of elections to denote the removal of a candidate from contention due to insufficient votes | |||
Danish | eliminere | ||
In Danish, the word "eliminere" also means "to excrete". | |||
Dutch | elimineren | ||
In Dutch, "elimineren" can also mean "to get rid of" or "to wipe out". | |||
English | eliminate | ||
The word 'eliminate' (from Latin 'eliminare') also means to isolate, cast out, or get rid of something. | |||
French | éliminer | ||
In French, "éliminer" also means to dismiss or exclude someone or something. | |||
Frisian | eliminearje | ||
The Frisian word "eliminearje" is derived from the Dutch word "elimineren", which itself comes from the Latin word "eliminare", meaning "to remove" or "to expel". | |||
Galician | eliminar | ||
In Galician, "eliminar" can also refer to removing something from a list or collection. | |||
German | beseitigen | ||
In German, "beseitigen" not only means "eliminate," but also "remove" or "dispose of." | |||
Icelandic | útiloka | ||
Útiloka is an example of Icelandic compound word structure, where two verbs, in this case “út” and “loka”, are combined. “Út” means “out”, “loka” means “to close” or “lock.” | |||
Irish | deireadh a chur | ||
The Irish word "deireadh a chur" literally means "to put an end to". | |||
Italian | eliminare | ||
In Italian, "eliminare" also means to "cancel" or "nullify" a legal document. | |||
Luxembourgish | eliminéieren | ||
Maltese | telimina | ||
The word "telimina" likely derives from the Italian "eliminare". Variant meanings include "remove" or "erase". | |||
Norwegian | eliminere | ||
In Norwegian, "eliminere" is a false friend meaning "to treat", "to cure" or "to heal". | |||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | eliminar | ||
The Portuguese verb "Eliminar" can mean either "to eliminate" or "to elect." | |||
Scots Gaelic | cuir às | ||
The word "cuir às" is related to the verb "cuir", meaning "to put" and the noun "às" meaning "out", and also to the phrase "cuir air ais" meaning "to return" or "to restore". | |||
Spanish | eliminar | ||
In medicine, "eliminar" also means to excrete bodily waste. | |||
Swedish | eliminera | ||
The word "eliminera" entered Swedish from French, and can also have the alternate meaning of "to cancel out". | |||
Welsh | dileu | ||
Welsh word "dileu" also means "destroy" or "annihilate." |
Belarusian | ліквідаваць | ||
The word "ліквідаваць" (eliminate) in Belarusian comes from the Latin word "liquidare" (to make clear), which is related to the words "liquid" and "liquidity." | |||
Bosnian | eliminirati | ||
The word "eliminirati" is derived from the Latin word "eliminare", which means "to remove outside". | |||
Bulgarian | премахване | ||
The word "премахване" in Bulgarian can also mean "to abolish" or "to repeal". | |||
Czech | odstranit | ||
Eliminate in Czech (odstranit) comes from the Old Church Slavonic verb "odstaviti" which means "to set aside, to move away". | |||
Estonian | kõrvaldada | ||
The verb "kõrvaldada" can also mean to "exclude" or "remove" something from consideration. | |||
Finnish | poistaa | ||
The word _poistaa_ ("remove" or "delete") in Finnish is related to the English word _post_ ("after"), meaning after the action of deletion, the object is not there anymore. | |||
Hungarian | megszüntetni | ||
Megszüntetni is originally related to getting rid of a feud or conflict through compensation or a formal contract. | |||
Latvian | likvidēt | ||
"Likvidēt" is directly derived from the Latin word "liquidus", meaning "clear" or "liquid". | |||
Lithuanian | pašalinti | ||
The etymology of "pašalinti" may have an alternate meaning of "to salt" due to the Proto-Indo-European root "*pelh₂" which also relates to salt. | |||
Macedonian | елиминира | ||
Елиминира (eliminate), meaning “remove,” comes from the Latin word elimināt-, meaning “to banish, to remove,” from ex-, “out,” and līmin-, “threshold.” | |||
Polish | wyeliminować | ||
Wyeliminować can also mean "to eliminate" or "to remove" in Polish. | |||
Romanian | înlătura | ||
The Romanian word "înlătura" means both "to eliminate" and "to replace or substitute". | |||
Russian | устранить | ||
The word "Устранить" is derived from the Old Slavic word "сторона", meaning "side". It can also mean "to remove" or "to solve". | |||
Serbian | елиминисати | ||
The word "елиминисати" in Serbian ultimately derives from the Latin word "eliminare," meaning "to put out of doors," and has come to mean "to remove" or "to get rid of something." | |||
Slovak | vylúčiť | ||
Vylúčiť is derived from the verb "lučiť," meaning "to separate." | |||
Slovenian | odpraviti | ||
The verb "odpraviti" comes from the Old Slavic root *prav-, meaning "straight" or "correct." | |||
Ukrainian | усунути | ||
The verb "усунути" in Ukrainian derives from the Proto-Slavic verb *usъnoti, meaning "to kill" or "to destroy". |
Bengali | নিষ্কাশন করা | ||
The word "নিষ্কাশন করা" is derived from the Sanskrit word "निष्+कृष", which means "to draw out" or "to extract". | |||
Gujarati | દૂર કરો | ||
This Gujarati word comes from the Sanskrit word "dūrakaraṇa", meaning "to remove". | |||
Hindi | को खत्म | ||
The word "को खत्म" ("eliminate") in Hindi is derived from the Sanskrit word "kṣaṇa" meaning "destruction" or "annihilation." | |||
Kannada | ನಿವಾರಿಸಿ | ||
The word "ನಿವಾರಿಸಿ" has alternate meanings of "rectify" and "ward off". | |||
Malayalam | ഇല്ലാതെയാക്കുവാൻ | ||
Marathi | दूर करणे | ||
The Marathi word "दूर करणे" ('दूर' meaning 'far' and 'करणे' meaning 'to do') can also refer to 'disposing of something harmful or troublesome'. | |||
Nepali | हटाउनु | ||
"हटाउनु" originally meant "to move" but is now also used to mean "to eliminate". | |||
Punjabi | ਖਤਮ ਕਰੋ | ||
The word "ਖਤਮ ਕਰੋ" is derived from the Persian word "khatm", which means "to finish" or "to end". | |||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) | තුරන් කරන්න | ||
Tamil | அகற்றவும் | ||
அகற்று is a noun meaning 'removal', and a verb meaning 'to move or take away'. | |||
Telugu | తొలగించండి | ||
Urdu | ختم | ||
'ختم' is connected to the Sanskrit 'kṣama' meaning 'destruction' or 'to destroy'. In Arabic, it means 'ending' or 'closing' something. |
Chinese (Simplified) | 消除 | ||
消除 (xiāochú) - to remove; to get rid of; to eliminate; to eradicate; to wipe out | |||
Chinese (Traditional) | 消除 | ||
"消除 (xiāochú)" derives from "除 (chú)", “remove,” and "消 (xiāo)", “melt away," also meaning "disappear." | |||
Japanese | 排除する | ||
排除する can also mean "to exclude" or "to reject". | |||
Korean | 죽이다 | ||
죽이다 is also used in the sense of completing work or finishing a job. | |||
Mongolian | арилгах | ||
"Арилгах" is related to the Sanskrit word "अरिवर्ग" which means "to separate out or exclude". | |||
Myanmar (Burmese) | ဖယ်ရှားပစ် | ||
"ဖယ်ရှားပစ်" can be used to describe the act of throwing something away or deleting something, and can also refer to the act of avoiding or getting rid of someone or something. |
Indonesian | menghapuskan | ||
"Menghapuskan" is the Indonesian equivalent of the English word "abolish," as in "to do away with (a law, custom, or institution)" | |||
Javanese | ngilangi | ||
The word "ngilangi" in Javanese can have alternate meanings, such as "take away", "subtract", or "diminish." | |||
Khmer | លុបបំបាត់ | ||
The word “លុបបំបាត់” (eliminate) is also used to refer to the process of getting rid of something unwanted or harmful. | |||
Lao | ລົບລ້າງ | ||
"ລົບລ້າງ" is derived from the word "ລົບ" which means "to rub, to erase" and is also used to describe the act of eliminating or removing something. | |||
Malay | menghapuskan | ||
The word "menghapuskan" is derived from the root word "hapus", which means "to erase" or "to remove". It can also be used figuratively to mean "to get rid of something" or "to do away with something". | |||
Thai | กำจัด | ||
The word "กำจัด" can also mean "to destroy" or "to exterminate". | |||
Vietnamese | loại bỏ | ||
The word loại bỏ is derived from the Chinese word 淘汰 (tào tài), which means "to discard" or "to eliminate". | |||
Filipino (Tagalog) | alisin | ||
Azerbaijani | aradan qaldırmaq | ||
The verb "aradan qaldırmaq" in Azerbaijani can also mean "to get rid of" or "to remove" something. | |||
Kazakh | жою | ||
The verb "жою" also means "to make something disappear" or "to get rid of something" in Kazakh. | |||
Kyrgyz | жок кылуу | ||
"Жок кылуу" is also used to refer to the process of removing something or getting rid of something. | |||
Tajik | бартараф кардан | ||
The word "бартараф кардан" is derived from the Persian word "برطرف کردن" which means "to remove" or "to eliminate". | |||
Turkmen | ýok et | ||
Uzbek | yo'q qilish | ||
Originates from Arabic "إِقَادَةٌ" - "to light a fire or a candle, to kindle"} | |||
Uyghur | يوقىتىش | ||
Hawaiian | hoʻopau | ||
'Hoʻopau' also means 'to finish' or 'to complete' in Hawaiian | |||
Maori | faaore | ||
The Māori word "faaore" also means "to make something disappear" and "to destroy". | |||
Samoan | aveese | ||
The Samoan word 'aveese' is also used to describe the act of 'evacuating' a building or area. | |||
Tagalog (Filipino) | matanggal | ||
The word "matanggal" can also mean "detached" or "removed". |
Aymara | chhqatayaña | ||
Guarani | pe'a | ||
Esperanto | elimini | ||
The Esperanto word "elimini" originates from a combination of Latin "e" (out) and "limen" (threshold), referring to the act of crossing over or passing a boundary. | |||
Latin | eliminate | ||
Eliminate, originating from Latin “elimino,” also signifies “to put out of doors, drive forth” as with the Romans expelling a political opponent. |
Greek | εξαλείφω | ||
The Greek verb εξαλείφω, meaning "to eliminate," derives from the prefix εκ- (out, away) and the verb αλείφω (to anoint). | |||
Hmong | tshem tawm | ||
"Tshem tawm" is the Hmong pronunciation of the Thai loanword ไทรแม (pronounced "tam tem"); it also carries connotations of "cleaning" or "polishing." | |||
Kurdish | jiberrakirin | ||
The word "jiberrakirin" in Kurdish, meaning "eliminate," has an alternate meaning of "disperse" or "scatter." | |||
Turkish | elemek | ||
In Turkish, "elemek" also means to choose or sift through, as in selecting the best candidates for a job. | |||
Xhosa | phelisa | ||
Xhosa word 'phelisa' can also mean 'to get rid of bad luck'. | |||
Yiddish | עלימינירן | ||
"עלימינירן" has a connotation of "getting rid of someone" (for example, firing or killing them), not just removing or disposing of something. | |||
Zulu | ukususa | ||
The Zulu word 'ukususa' also means 'to remove' or 'to take away'. | |||
Assamese | নিষ্কাশন | ||
Aymara | chhqatayaña | ||
Bhojpuri | हटावल | ||
Dhivehi | މަދުކުރުން | ||
Dogri | खतम करना | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) | alisin | ||
Guarani | pe'a | ||
Ilocano | ikkaten | ||
Krio | dɔnawe wit | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) | بنبڕکردن | ||
Maithili | हटेनाइ | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯂꯧꯊꯣꯛꯄ | ||
Mizo | tiboral | ||
Oromo | balleessuu | ||
Odia (Oriya) | ହଟାନ୍ତୁ | | ||
Quechua | chinkachiy | ||
Sanskrit | निष्काषन | ||
Tatar | бетерү | ||
Tigrinya | ምውጋድ | ||
Tsonga | herisa | ||