Extinct Means the Fire Has Gone Out
A species is extinct when the last of it has died. The word comes from putting out a fire, and volcanoes borrow the same term.
Extinct describes something that has completely ceased to exist: a species with no members left, a language with no speakers, a title with no heir. The Latin *exstinguere* means to put out a fire, which is why an extinct volcano is one whose fire is judged to be out for good.
- No longer existing as a species. *The dodo is extinct.*
- No longer active (of a volcano). *An extinct crater.*
- No longer in use. *An extinct custom.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Adjective | extinct | Long extinct. |
| Noun | extinction | Mass extinction. |
| Verb | extinguish | Extinguish the flame. |
| Noun | extinguisher | A fire extinguisher. |
| Related | endangered | An endangered species. |
How it is used in a sentence
- The bird has been extinct since 1936.Extinct takes a date, not a process.
- Habitat loss is driving species to extinction.Extinction is the noun for the event.
- The volcano is dormant, not extinct.An important distinction to geologists.
The scale of risk
- Least concern — plentiful
- Vulnerable — at risk in the medium term
- Endangered — at high risk of extinction
- Critically endangered — at extremely high risk
- Extinct in the wild — surviving only in captivity
From Latin *exstinctus*, past participle of *exstinguere*, to put out or quench, from *ex* and *stinguere*, to quench. English used it of fires and lights before it used it of species.
Dormant or extinct volcano?
Dormant means it has not erupted recently but could. Extinct means scientists judge it will not erupt again, and the judgement is sometimes revised.
Can a language be extinct?
Yes, when its last fluent speaker dies. Some are later revived from records, which is why *dormant* is now used for these too.