Extinction
Origin
From French extinction, from Latin extinctio ("extinction, annihilation"), from extinguere, past participle extinctus ("to extinguish"); see extinguish.
Noun
extinction
(plural extinctions)- The action of making or becoming extinct; annihilation.
- 2012-01, Donald Worster, A Drier and Hotter Future, Phoenix and Lubbock are both caught in severe drought, and it is going to get much worse. We may see many such dust storms in the decades ahead, along with species extinctions, radical disturbance of ecosystems, and intensified social conflict over land and water. Welcome to the Anthropocene, the epoch when humans have become a major geological and climatic force.
- (astronomy) The absorption or scattering of electromagnetic radiation emitted by astronomical objects by intervening dust and gas before it reaches the observer.