extinct

extinct — adjective

1. describes a type of animal, plant, language, or way of life that once existed on

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

describes a type of animal, plant, language, or way of life that once existed on earth but has completely died out, so that no members or speakers remain anywhere.

Example

The dodo bird became extinct in the late 1600s due to hunting and habitat loss.

became extinct + time period + cause

Many indigenous languages in South America risk extinction as fewer children learn them from elders.

risk extinction + reason

Common collocations
  • become extinct
  • go extinct
  • declared extinct
  • nearly extinct
  • completely extinct
  • functionally extinct
Synonyms
  • vanished

    emphasises disappearance without a clear trace; can apply to civilisations or objects, not typically to biological species

  • lost

    broader term that can mean destroyed, misplaced, or simply no longer available; a lost city could be rediscovered, but an extinct species cannot

  • defunct

    used for organisations, systems, or laws that no longer function; rarely used for living things

Antonyms
  • living

    still alive and present

  • extant

    formal term for a species, language, or document that still exists

  • existing

    currently in existence

Grammar Patterns

become + extinct

go + extinct

be + extinct

extinct + noun (species, language, civilization)

Usage Note

Typically used with the verbs become, go, or be declared. Common nouns this adjective modifies include species, language, civilization, culture, tradition, and custom. A species is not called extinct until every last individual has been confirmed dead or gone.

Common Mistakes

Pandas are extinct.
Pandas are endangered.
extinct means completely gone; endangered means at serious risk but still surviving.
That old custom is now extincted.
That old custom is now extinct.
extinct is an adjective, not a verb. Do not add -ed.

2. describes a volcano that has not erupted in recorded history and is not expected

2.adjectiveB2
Definition

describes a volcano that has not erupted in recorded history and is not expected to erupt again, so its cone and crater remain but there is no molten rock activity below the surface.

Example

Mount Hoei in Japan is an extinct volcano that has not erupted for over ten thousand years.

extinct volcano + named example + time since eruption

The trail led the group up the cone of an extinct volcano to a crater filled with rainwater.

Common collocations
  • extinct volcano
  • classified as extinct
Synonyms
  • inactive

    broader term that also covers dormant volcanoes; does not carry the same finality as extinct

  • dead

    informal equivalent for extinct volcano

Antonyms
  • active

    currently erupting or likely to erupt

  • dormant

    temporarily inactive but could erupt again

Grammar Patterns

extinct + volcano

Usage Note

Used almost exclusively to modify the noun volcano. Do not confuse with dormant — a dormant volcano could erupt again, while an extinct volcano cannot.

Common Mistakes

Mount Vesuvius is an extinct volcano.
Mount Vesuvius is a dormant volcano.
Vesuvius erupted in 1944 and could erupt again, so it is dormant, not extinct.

3. describes a fire, flame, or source of artificial light that has stopped burning

3.adjectiveC1
Definition

describes a fire, flame, or source of artificial light that has stopped burning or shining completely, leaving only cold ash, embers, or a dead bulb.

Example

Élise knelt by the fireplace and blew on the coals, but the fire was extinct and would not catch.

When the firefighters arrived, the blaze had burned itself extinct, leaving only blackened timber.

burned itself extinct + remains of fire

Common collocations
  • burned extinct
  • gone extinct (for fire)
Synonyms
  • out

    everyday word for a fire or light that is no longer burning

  • dead

    informal; a dead fire has no remaining heat or flame

Antonyms
  • alight

    burning or glowing

  • lit

    illuminated or burning

Grammar Patterns

be + extinct

burn + extinct

Usage Note

In modern everyday English, the adjective extinct for fire has largely been replaced by out or dead. Using extinct in this sense sounds literary or old-fashioned and is uncommon outside novels and historical writing.

Common Mistakes

The campfire is extinct, let us light another one.
The campfire is out, let us light another one.
out is the natural choice in everyday speech; extinct sounds overly formal.

extinct — verb

Word family

  • extinction
    nounB2
  • extinguish
    verbC1
  • extinguisher
    nounB2
  • extinctive
    adjectiveC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Extinct (B2) is the most precise and final term for species, languages, or civilisations that have completely died out with no living representatives left. Vanished (B2) focuses on the act of disappearing without a clear trace — a civilisation may vanish, but its ruins might later be found. Lost (A2) is the broadest of the four: a lost city could be rediscovered, a lost tradition could be revived, but an extinct species cannot return. Defunct (C1) is reserved for man-made things — organisations, laws, companies — that no longer function. For example, the dodo bird is extinct; the legendary city of Atlantis is lost; the Soviet Union is a defunct state; the Anasazi civilisation vanished from the southwestern United States centuries before Europeans arrived.

extinct ↗vanishedlost ↗defunct

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • become extinct
  • go extinct
  • be declared extinct
  • be classed as extinct
  • hunt to extinction

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Extinct comes from the Latin word exstinctus, meaning 'put out' or 'quenched'. The Latin verb exstinguere combined ex- ('out') and stinguere ('to quench' or 'to prick'). The original use in English was for putting out fires; the meaning then spread to volcanoes that had stopped erupting, and later to species, languages, and traditions that had died out completely. The verb sense 'to extinct' preserves this oldest meaning but is now considered archaic.