Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

extinction

 noun
     
Related topics: Biology
ex‧tinc‧tion [uncountable]
1HB when a particular type of animal or plant stops existing:
on the verge/edge/brink of extinction (=nearly extinct)
The breed was on the verge of extinction.
They were hunted almost to extinction.
Conservationists are trying to save the whale from extinction.
face extinction/be threatened with extinction
Many endangered species now face extinction.
2 when a type of person, custom, skill etc stops existing:
Their traditional way of life seems doomed to extinction.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
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