extraction

noun

ex·​trac·​tion ik-ˈstrak-shən 

1

: the act or process of extracting something

2

: ancestry, origin

a family of French extraction

3

: something extracted

Synonyms

• ancestry
• birth
• blood
• bloodline
• breeding
• descent
• family tree
• genealogy
• line
• lineage
• origin
• parentage
• pedigree
• stock
• strain

Examples of extraction in a Sentence

tooth extractions and other dental procedures

the extraction of teeth by dentists

the extraction of juices from plant matter

Recent Examples on the Web

Harder core, existing extraction shooter players thought the game was too dumbed down to be something that improved the genre, catering to casuals. —Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 3 May 2025

The game is an extraction shooter — a genre where players are tasked with infiltrating a zone, scavenging resources and completing missions while surviving environmental threats and assaults by other Runners, before finding an exfiltration point to escape with their bounty. —Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 2 May 2025

The action aims to boost fossil fuel extraction across federal lands and waters — despite domestic oil and gas production being at record highs — while simultaneously working to thwart renewable energy projects. —Chris D'angelo, Vox, 2 May 2025

This pace is driven mainly by unsustainable groundwater extraction, experts say, though it’s also exacerbated by rising sea levels. —Lindsey McGinnis, Christian Science Monitor, 1 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English extraccioun "removal (of blood, foreign matter from the body), determination (of the root of a number)," borrowed from Late Latin extractiōn-, extractiō "withdrawal, removal," from Latin extrac-, variant stem of extrahere "to pull out, draw forth" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of verbal action — more at extract entry 1

Note: Sense 2, attested since William Caxton, is based on Middle French extracion, estration, etc., in this meaning.

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing extraction

• dilation and extraction

Rhymes for extraction

• abstraction
• attraction
• compaction
• contraction
• detraction
• diffraction
• distraction
• exaction
• impaction
• inaction
• infraction
• olfaction

Kids Definition

extraction

noun

ex·​trac·​tion ik-ˈstrak-shən 

1

: the act or process of extracting

2

: the origin of a person

of Italian extraction

Medical Definition

extraction

noun

ex·​trac·​tion ik-ˈstrak-shən 

: the act or process of extracting something

extraction of a tooth