exterminate

Etymology

From Latin exterminātus, perfect passive participle of exterminō, itself from ex- + terminō (“I finish, close, end”) (from terminus (“limit, end”)).

verb

1. (transitive) To kill all of (a population of pests or undesirables), usually intentionally.
   We'll use poison to exterminate the rats.
   The geth are a humanoid race of networked A.I.s. They were created by the quarians 300 years ago as tools of labor and war. When the geth showed signs of self-evolution, the quarians attempted to exterminate them. The geth won the resulting war. This example has led to legal, systematic repression of artificial intelligences in galactic society. 2008, BioWare, Mass Effect (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →OCLC, PC, scene: Geth Codex entry
2. (figurative, transitive) To bring a definite end to; finish completely.
   The public school failed to exterminate truancy.