get rid of

/gɪt rɪd əv/

/gɛt rɪd əv/

Other forms: got rid of; getting rid of; gets rid of; gotten rid of

To get rid of something is to throw it away or otherwise dispose of it. You may need to get rid of the garbage stinking up your kitchen, or you may need to get rid of your annoying neighbor during your backyard BBQ.

When you get rid of clothes that don't fit you, you might give them to a friend or donate them to a charity. If you have to get rid of your guinea pig, you'll want to find her a new home or take her to the local shelter. Sometimes get rid of is used to mean "kill" or "abolish," the way a gangster gets rid of an enemy or a senator gets rid of an archaic law.

Definitions of get rid of

1. verb

   dispose of
   “Get rid of these old shoes!”

   “The company got rid of all the dead wood”

   synonyms: remove

   types:

   cast aside, cast away, cast out, chuck out, discard, dispose, fling, put away, throw away, throw out, toss, toss away, toss out

   throw or cast away

   slough off

   discard as undesirable

   comb out, weed out

   remove unwanted elements

   work off

   cause to go away through effort or work

   cull

   remove something that has been rejected

   ditch, dump

   sever all ties with, usually unceremoniously or irresponsibly

   unmuzzle

   remove the muzzle from (a dog)

   de-aerate, deaerate

   remove air or gas from

   decaffeinate

   remove caffeine from (coffee)

   decarbonate

   remove carbon dioxide from

   decerebrate

   remove the cerebrum from (a human body)

   dechlorinate

   remove chlorine from (water)

   defat

   remove the fat from

   defibrinate

   remove fibrin from (blood)

   degrease

   remove grease or oil from (a pan)

   deionize

   remove ions from

   delist

   remove (a security) from listing at a stock exchange

   delocalize

   remove from the proper or usual locality

   deoxygenate

   remove oxygen from (water)

   destain

   remove stain from (a laboratory specimen) to enhance contrast

   desulfurize, desulphurize

   remove sulfur from

   detick

   free (a pet) of ticks

   devein

   remove the dark dorsal vein of (a shrimp)

   fettle

   remove mold marks or sand from (a casting)

   flesh

   remove adhering flesh from (hides) when preparing leather manufacture

   flense

   strip the blubber or skin from (a whale or seal)

   kern

   remove a portion of space between (adjacent letters)

   pith

   remove the pith from (a plant)

   scum

   remove the scum from

   unbridle

   remove the bridle from (a horse or mule)

   unlearn

   discard something previously learnt, like an old habit

   deep-six, give it the deep six

   toss out; get rid of

   jettison

   throw away, of something encumbering

   junk, scrap, trash

   dispose of (something useless or old)

   waste

   get rid of

   dump

   throw away as refuse

   retire

   dispose of (something no longer useful or needed)

   abandon

   forsake; leave behind

   liquidize, sell out, sell up

   get rid of all one's merchandise

   de-access

   dispose of by selling

   close out

   terminate by selling off or disposing of
2. verb

   do away with
   synonyms: abolish

   types:

   cashier

   discard or do away with

   abrogate

   revoke formally
3. verb

   terminate, end, or take out
   synonyms: do away with, eliminate, extinguish

   types:

   cancel out, wipe out

   wipe out the effect of something

   decouple

   reduce or eliminate the coupling of (one circuit or part to another)

   decouple

   eliminate airborne shock waves from (an explosive)

   annihilate, obliterate

   do away with completely, without leaving a trace

   knock out

   eliminate

   drown

   get rid of as if by submerging

   cut out

   delete or remove

   cut, prune, rationalise, rationalize

   weed out unwanted or unnecessary things

   extinguish, snuff out

   put an end to; kill

   except, exclude, leave off, leave out, omit, take out

   prevent from being included or considered or accepted

   excise

   remove by cutting

   stamp

   destroy or extinguish as if by stamping with the foot

   elide

   leave or strike out

   put out, smother

   deprive of the oxygen necessary for combustion

   type of:

   destroy, destruct

   do away with, cause the destruction or undoing of