ex·tinct
ik-ˈstiŋ(k)t 
ˈek-ˌstiŋ(k)t
ˈek-ˌstiŋ(k)t
1
a
: no longer burning
b
: no longer active
an extinct volcano
2
: no longer existing
an extinct animal
3
a
: gone out of use : superseded
b
: having no qualified claimant
an extinct title
Examples of extinct in a Sentence
Adjective
Many of these old traditions have since become extinct.
a few overgrown ruins are all that remain of that once mighty but now extinct civilization
Recent Examples on the Web
Nell Lewis, CNN Money, 29 May 2025
One of these two lineages is the ancestor of the present-day strains, while the other strain re-emerged over centuries in Europe and went extinct by the early 19th century.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 29 May 2025
At the end of the Pleistocene Epoch, 2.6 million to 11,700 years ago, a ground sloth that stood 8 to 10 feet tall went extinct.
—Jennifer Rodriguez, Kansas City Star, 27 May 2025
Preserving old-growth forest for a single owl species (to give a classic example) means the forest—and everything living there—suddenly loses protection if that owl goes extinct anyway (as the northern spotted owl very well could).
—Emma Marris, The Atlantic, 25 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for extinct
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Adjective
Related article Rhinos went extinct in Uganda 40 years ago.
—Nell Lewis, CNN Money, 29 May 2025
One of these two lineages is the ancestor of the present-day strains, while the other strain re-emerged over centuries in Europe and went extinct by the early 19th century.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 29 May 2025
At the end of the Pleistocene Epoch, 2.6 million to 11,700 years ago, a ground sloth that stood 8 to 10 feet tall went extinct.
—Jennifer Rodriguez, Kansas City Star, 27 May 2025
Preserving old-growth forest for a single owl species (to give a classic example) means the forest—and everything living there—suddenly loses protection if that owl goes extinct anyway (as the northern spotted owl very well could).
—Emma Marris, The Atlantic, 25 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for extinct
Cite this Entry
“Extinct.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/extinct. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
extinct
adjective
ex·tinct
ik-ˈstiŋ(k)t
ˈek-ˌ
ˈek-ˌ
: no longer existing : lacking living representatives
extinct prehistoric animals
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