erase

Etymology

From Latin erasus, past participle of eradere (“to scrape, to abrade”), from ex- (“out of”) + radere (“to scrape”). Compare Middle English arasen, aracen (“to eradicate, erase”). Displaced native Old English dilegian.

verb

1. (transitive) to remove markings or information
   I erased that note because it was wrong.
2. (transitive) To obliterate information from (a storage medium), such as to clear or (with magnetic storage) to demagnetize.
   I'm going to erase this tape.
3. (transitive) To obliterate (information) from a storage medium, such as to clear or to overwrite.
   I'm going to erase those files.
4. (transitive, baseball) To remove a runner from the bases via a double play or pick off play
   Jones was erased by a 6-4-3 double play.
5. (intransitive) To be erased (have markings removed, have information removed, or be cleared of information).
   The chalkboard erased easily.
   The files will erase quickly.
6. (transitive) To disregard (a group, an orientation, etc.); to prevent from having an active role in society.
   I suggest, then, that counterdiscourses, when reductive, tend to emulate the screen discourse that erases gay sociality. 1998, Janice Lynn Ristock, Catherine Taylor, Inside the academy and out
   As a result, Palestinians are hyperpresent in Israeli media, while Mizrahim are erased from public discourse. 2004, Daniel Lefkowitz, Words and Stones, page 209
   Silence around Native sexuality benefits the colonizers and erases queer Native people from their communities. 2011, Qwo-Li Driskill, Queer Indigenous Studies, page 40
   C.J. Henderson has the speed and anticipation to erase receivers all over the field, and his athleticism is absurd; according to Bruce Feldman of The Athletic, Henderson bench presses 380 pounds and squats 545. April 24 2020, Ken Belson, Ben Shpigel, “Full Round 1 2020 N.F.L. Picks and Analysis”, in New York Time
7. (transitive, slang) To kill; assassinate.

noun

1. (computing) The operation of deleting data.
   This subsystem is waiting to become Exclusive after having issued an erase. 2000, Mark D. Hill, Norman P. Jouppi, Gurindar S. Sohi, Readings in Computer Architecture, page 603