uproot

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   to pull a plant or tree out of the ground with its roots

   The storm may uproot trees growing in the waterlogged soil.

2. 2
   verb

   to force a person or community to leave a home or familiar environment

   The fighting could uproot thousands of families from the valley.

3. 3
   verb

   to remove or destroy an established practice, belief, or problem completely

   The reforms aim to uproot corruption throughout the agency.

Formed in English from up- + root, first in the literal sense of pulling a plant up by its roots. Root came through Middle English from Old Norse rot and ultimately a Proto-Indo-European word for 'root'; the displacement and eradication senses are figurative extensions.

Topics