root and branch

See also: root-and-branch

English

Alternative forms

• root-and-branch

Etymology

From the Bible. Used as a title for the Root and Branch petition presented to the Long Parliament on December 11, 1640.

Adjective

root and branch (not comparable)

1. Total, thorough, sweeping, complete, radical, drastic.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:total

   • 1921, Lytton Strachey, Queen Victoria‎^[1]:

     When, in 1872, Sir Charles Dilke once more returned to the charge in the House of Commons, introducing a motion for a full enquiry into the Queen's expenditure with a view to a root and branch reform of the Civil List, […]

   • 2022 October 27, Damian Carrington, quoting Inger Andersen, “Climate crisis: UN finds ‘no credible pathway to 1.5C in place’”, in The Guardian‎^[2]:

     We had our chance to make incremental changes, but that time is over. Only a root-and-branch transformation of our economies and societies can save us from accelerating climate disaster.

   • 2023 January 19, Aletha Adu, quoting Keir Starmer, “Keir Starmer suggests Met explore changing name in ‘root and branch’ review”, in The Guardian‎^[3], →ISSN:

     Keir Starmer has indicated the Metropolitan police might need to change its name as part of a much-needed “root and branch” review in the wake of the David Carrick case.

   • 2023 March 8, Howard Johnston, “Was Marples the real railway wrecker?”, in RAIL, number 978, page 52:

     In his favour, Beeching declared that he supported carrying on with the existing modernisation projects, but that the rest of the business needed root and branch reform.

Translations

complete, total — see also complete

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: gjennomgripende, tvers igjennom

• Russian: радика́льный (ru) m (radikálʹnyj), коренно́й (ru) m (korennój)
• Swedish: genomgripande (sv), radikal (sv), grundlig (sv)

Adverb

root and branch (not comparable)

1. Totally, completely.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:completely

   • 1876, Anthony Trollope, chapter LV, in The Prime Minister. […], volumes (please specify |volume=I to IV), London: Chapman & Hall, […], →OCLC:

     "I can't help coming, sir," continued Mrs. Parker. "Where am I to go if I don't come? Mr. Lopez, sir, has ruined us root and branch,—root and branch."

   • 1905 April, Jack London, “(please specify the page)”, in War of the Classes, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:

     And far be it from me to deny that socialism is a menace. It is its purpose to wipe out, root and branch, all capitalistic institutions of present-day society.

Derived terms

• root-and-brancher

Translations

totally — see also totally

• Scottish Gaelic: bun is bàrr, eadar cheann is chasan

See also

• top-to-bottom