The etymology of liquidate traces back t the Latin word liquidus, meaning "fluid, most, or clear".  From this root, the word's meaning has branched into several distinct senses over time, including financial transactions and a euphemism for killing.  1570s: The earliest English use of liquidate meant "to reduce accounts to order" or "to set out clearly". This meaning, derived from the Latin idea of "making clear," is now obsolete. The related noun liquidation also appeared around this time in a legal context.  1755: The sense of "to clear away" a debt or obligation was first recorded.  1818: The financial sense of "converting assets into cash" began to appear, evolving from a 17th-century Scots Law usage referring to legally proven debts.  1924: The grim meaning of "to wipe out or kill," especially applied to people, emerged, possibly influenced by the Russian word likvidirovat. This euphemistic sense was notably used in communist writings during the 20th century. 

According to the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), the verb "liquidate" was first used in English around 1575.  The earliest known evidence comes from Balfour's Practicks, with the entry on the Oxford English Dictionary website showing its usage in the late 1500s. 

Examples of the word "liquidate" in a sentence: 
Financial Context:  To convert assets into cash: "She decided to liquidate her stock portfolio to pay for a new house." 
To close a company by selling its assets to pay debts: "After years of financial losses, the company was forced to liquidate." 

Debt context:  To pay off or settle a debt: "He received a large sum of money to liquidate the old family claims." 

Elimination context:  To do away with an organization: "The administration is dead set on liquidating our public lands as quickly as possible." 
To get rid of something or someone, often by killing (used especially in older or more dramatic contexts): "The movie is about a hitman hired to liquidate a powerful businessman."