extinguishex‧tin‧guish /ɪkˈstɪŋɡwɪʃ/ verb [transitive] formal 
Word Origin Examples
Please extinguish all cigarettes. Firemen were called to extinguish the blaze.► see thesaurus at burn2to make an idea or feeling stop: All hope was almost extinguished.
Word OriginWORD ORIGINextinguish
Verb TableOrigin:
1500-1600 Latin exstinguere, from stinguere ‘to extinguish’VERB TABLE
extinguish
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | extinguish |
| he, she, it | extinguishes | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | extinguished |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have extinguished |
| he, she, it | has extinguished | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had extinguished |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will extinguish |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have extinguished |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am extinguishing |
| he, she, it | is extinguishing | |
| you, we, they | are extinguishing | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was extinguishing |
| you, we, they | were extinguishing | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been extinguishing |
| he, she, it | has been extinguishing | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been extinguishing |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be extinguishing |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been extinguishing |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
Thesaurus- He managed to extinguish the flames with his coat.
- It took several hours to extinguish the blaze.
- Passengers are requested to extinguish all cigarettes when the red light goes on.
- The news extinguished all hope of his return.
- Would all passengers please extinguish their cigarettes? Thank you.
- And I fear for the darkness as four Justices anxiously await the single vote necessary to extinguish the light.
- Her anger, newly kindled, needed something to scorch and shrivel before it could be extinguished.
- It was not until early November 1991 that the last of the oil well fires was extinguished.
- Smoking is allowed only inside vehicles, and the smokes must be extinguished inside those vehicles.
- That threat-and the fear of a spiral of violence-also extinguished international support for a declaration on September 13.
- You would no more turn them off than you would extinguish life.
THESAURUSto make something stop burning► put out
Collocations to make something such as a fire, cigarette, or candle stop burning: · It took firefighters four hours to put out the blaze.· She threw sand on the fire to put it out.· I put out my cigarette and went back into the house.
► extinguish formal to make something such as a fire, cigarette, or candle stop burning: · He managed to extinguish the flames with his coat.· Customers who smoke will be asked to extinguish their cigarettes or leave the premises.
► blow out to make a flame or fire stop burning by blowing on it: · He blew out the candle and went to sleep.· The wind blew out the fire.
Longman Language Activatorto make something stop burning► put out to make a fire stop burning, or make a cigarette, pipe etc stop burning: put out something: · It took firefighters four hours to put out the blaze.· I put out my cigarette and went back into the house.put something out: · She threw sand on the fire to put it out.
► extinguish formal to make a fire stop burning, or make a cigarette stop burning - used especially in official notices or statements: · Would all passengers please extinguish their cigarettes? Thank you.· He managed to extinguish the flames with his coat.
► blow out to make a flame or fire stop burning by blowing on it: blow out something: · You have to blow out all the candles or your wish won't come true.blow something out: · We tried to light a fire but the wind kept blowing it out.
► smother to cover a fire with something in order to stop it burning: · I grabbed a blanket and tried to smother the flames.
► stub out to stop a cigarette from burning by pushing it against something hard: stub out something: · She stubbed out her cigarette on the edge of the table.stub something out: · Don't stub your cigarette out on the floor!
to stop a fire from burning► put out to make a fire stop burning: put out the fire/blaze/flames: · It took firefighters four hours to put out the blaze.put something out: · She threw sand on the fire to put it out.
► extinguish formal to stop a fire burning: · He managed to extinguish the flames with his coat.· It took several hours to extinguish the blaze.
► blow out to make a flame or fire stop burning by blowing on it: blow out a candle/match/fire etc: · He blew out the candle and went to sleep.blow something out: · We tried to light a fire but the wind kept blowing it out.
► smother to cover a fire with something in order to stop it from burning: · If the victim's clothes are burning, use a blanket to smother the flames.
to make a cigarette, pipe etc stop burning► put out to make a cigarette, cigar, or pipe stop burning: put out something: · Bill put out his pipe and stood up to leave.put something out: · Put that cigarette out at once!
► extinguish formal to put out a cigarette, cigar, or pipe - used especially in official notices or announcements: · Passengers are requested to extinguish all cigarettes when the red light goes on.
► stub out to put out a cigarette by pressing the end of it against something: stub out something: · She nervously stubbed out her cigarette, and immediately lit another one.stub something out: · He smoked three cigarettes and stubbed them out in his saucer.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES► put out/extinguish a blaze
1to make a fire or light stop burning or shining SYN put out: · Staff managed to put out the blaze before firemen arrived.
► extinguish a cigarette formal (=put out a cigarette)· The pilot said 'Please extinguish all cigarettes and fasten your seat belts.’
► put out/extinguish the flames (=make them stop burning)· The firemen successfully put out the flames.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSNOUN► fire· The fire brigade which was at the first blaze about 100 yards away extinguished the second fire in a short time.· She is best remembered for extinguishing a blazing fire by making the sign of the cross.· At least ten fire engines fought for two hours to extinguish fires in the two buildings.· The system uses gas instead of water, which can extinguish fires without damage to customer equipment.· The final objective is to extinguish the fire, and this should occur within eight to ten minutes of ignition.· Exhalations from the Earth extinguish the sun's fire gradually every day and cause the darkness of night.· Firefighters extinguished two spot fires on adjacent homes.
► flame· Firemen wearing breathing apparatus used special foam to extinguish the flames in the factory's North Works.· Nothing seemed to extinguish the flames.· When fire does occur, detecting, containing and extinguishing the flames are the three main principles of immediate action.
Please extinguish all cigarettes. Firemen were called to extinguish the blaze.► see thesaurus at burn2to make an idea or feeling stop: All hope was almost extinguished.