消灭

The Chinese word 消灭 (xiāomiè) is composed of two characters: 消 (xiāo) and 灭 (miè). The character 消 originally meant "to melt" or "to dissolve", and was often used in the context of snow or ice melting. Over time, its meaning expanded to include "to disappear", "to vanish", or "to be extinguished". The character 灭 originally meant "to put out a fire" or "to extinguish a flame". It was also used in the sense of "to destroy" or "to annihilate". When combined, the two characters 消灭 form a compound word that means "to eliminate", "to eradicate", or "to wipe out". This word is often used in a negative sense, to describe the destruction of something harmful or undesirable. For example, it can be used to describe the elimination of a disease, the eradication of poverty, or the wiping out of an enemy force.