VANDALIZE Synonyms: 48 Similar and Opposite Words

vandalize

verb

ˈvan-də-ˌlīz

Definition of vandalize

as in to destroy

to deliberately cause the damage or destruction of another's property he decided to vandalize the store because the owner had kicked him out

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of vandalize Before dawn that day, activists vandalized an administration building. — Arkansas Online, 10 Oct. 2026 Flock Safety’s license plate scanners are being vandalized and cities have ended contracts with the company over community outcry. — Samantha Subin, CNBC, 4 Oct. 2026 Paint can chip and fade and public art faces the constant threat of being vandalized. — Tania Azhang, Sacbee.com, 3 Oct. 2026 To protest in the street, to be arrested for attacking a police officer or vandalizing private property, or making a fool of yourself in any of a hundred different ways is valuable currency to anyone seeking status within an activist organization. — Chris Roemer, Baltimore Sun, 1 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for vandalize

Recent Examples of Synonyms for vandalize

Verb

Rather than undertaking the difficult but just and moral work of reform of the nation's immigration laws, Vance would destroy and expel their families with a smile, claiming that such actions will save you money.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 16 Oct. 2026
Running low on fuel, NASA chose to steer Cassini straight into Saturn's atmosphere, where the spacecraft was destroyed.

— Tariq Malik, Space.com, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of destroy

Verb

Over the weekend, ShinyHunters boasted about hijacking and defacing CLOP’s site on the dark web with an image of a Pokémon.

— Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 21 Sep. 2026
This is now the third attempt to deface this sacred memorial and turn it into a vanity project for one man’s ego.

— Ted Johnson, Deadline, 14 Sep. 2026

Definition of deface

Verb

For one thing, Baron Haussmann had demolished swaths of the neighborhood in the mid-eighteen-hundreds to create the Place de la République.

— Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
In the 1990s, plans to demolish the deteriorating site and replace it with an underground car park sparked fierce opposition from local residents and traders, who successfully campaigned to save it.

— Alessia Armenise, Condé Nast Traveler, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of demolish

Verb

In Tirana this week, protesters smashed windows, set alight government buildings and clashed with police.

— Reuters, NBC news, 17 Oct. 2026
Federal officials maintain the immigration officers believed their lives were in danger and opened fire only after Belgal smashed his car into two government vehicles and accelerated toward them.

— Anthony Izaguirre, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of smash

Verb

California is among the states that successfully sued, in part by arguing that turning over the data would violate state privacy laws.

— SAFIYAH RIDDLE, Arkansas Online, 15 Oct. 2026
As noted recently by Deadline, other Chinese AI models continue to plunder IP, including MiniMax H3, which generated videos that violated studio brand safety standards 55% of the time when an image was used in a prompt.

— Jake Kanter, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of violate

Verb

Miles said one of his friends made the decision to drop his early decision application to Cornell, not because of the incident itself, but for fear the school’s reputation would be damaged.

— Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2026
Insurance payouts for mortgaged homes damaged or destroyed by fires are typically not sent directly to homeowners but instead are held by lenders or servicers, who then disburse the funds in tranches as a home is rebuilt or repaired.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of damage

Verb

In a testament to its authenticity, one of the hotel’s housekeepers trashed part of the installation.

— Hikmat Mohammed, ARTnews.com, 15 Oct. 2026
Expect Raman, whom City Hall opponents have long trashed as conflict-averse, to focus on a message of possibility and positivity while holding her ground and striking back — and hard — when necessary.

— Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of trash

Browse Nearby Words

vandalization

vandalize

vandalized

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Vandalize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vandalize. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of vandalize

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

compunction

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes