metastasize
verb
me·tas·ta·size
mə-ˈta-stə-ˌsīz 
metastasized; metastasizing
: to spread or grow by or as if by metastasis
died of lung cancer which had metastasized throughout his body—
G. P. Elliott
G. P. ElliottExamples of metastasize in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The violence has hovered near historic levels, while the gangs’ extortion rackets and other criminal enterprises have metastasized into every layer of the economy.
—Tim Golden, ProPublica, 31 Jan. 2024
By early summer, the Klan had metastasized into a domestic terrorist organization intimidating blacks and the white Republicans and radicals who supported their rights.
—Daniel Foster, National Review, 30 Nov. 2023
Mom and son’s royal ambitions metastasize from there, leading to family backbiting, a beheading or two, murder, death and more plots.
—Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2024
But as Yoong’s experience grimly shows, the Golden Triangle’s criminal reboot has metastasized beyond narcotics.
—TIME, 21 Mar. 2024
For others, the anger of those pandemic days has metastasized into a deeper lack of faith in politics.
—Reid J. Epstein, New York Times, 24 Mar. 2024
My sister was diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer that metastasized to her bones.
—Letter Writers, Twin Cities, 11 Feb. 2024
She was initially diagnosed with Stage III HER2+ PR/ER IDC breast cancer, which progressed to Stage 4 after metastasizing to her lungs.
—Sandra Rose Salathe, Peoplemag, 11 Oct. 2023
Just like humans, our canine friends can also develop soft tissue sarcomas underneath their skin, which can metastasize and spread with fatal consequences.
—Juergen Eckhardt, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024
Tim Golden, ProPublica, 31 Jan. 2024
By early summer, the Klan had metastasized into a domestic terrorist organization intimidating blacks and the white Republicans and radicals who supported their rights.
—Daniel Foster, National Review, 30 Nov. 2023
Mom and son’s royal ambitions metastasize from there, leading to family backbiting, a beheading or two, murder, death and more plots.
—Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2024
But as Yoong’s experience grimly shows, the Golden Triangle’s criminal reboot has metastasized beyond narcotics.
—TIME, 21 Mar. 2024
For others, the anger of those pandemic days has metastasized into a deeper lack of faith in politics.
—Reid J. Epstein, New York Times, 24 Mar. 2024
My sister was diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer that metastasized to her bones.
—Letter Writers, Twin Cities, 11 Feb. 2024
She was initially diagnosed with Stage III HER2+ PR/ER IDC breast cancer, which progressed to Stage 4 after metastasizing to her lungs.
—Sandra Rose Salathe, Peoplemag, 11 Oct. 2023
Just like humans, our canine friends can also develop soft tissue sarcomas underneath their skin, which can metastasize and spread with fatal consequences.
—Juergen Eckhardt, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'metastasize.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Metastasize.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/metastasize. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
metastasize
verb
me·tas·ta·size
mə-ˈtas-tə-ˌsīz
: to spread or grow by or as if by metastasis
Medical Definition
metastasize
intransitive verb
me·tas·ta·size
variants
also British metastasise
metastasized also British metastasised; metastasizing also British metastasising
: to spread by metastasis
… all ten were primary brain cancers; that is, they had originated in the brain, and not metastasized there from elsewhere in the body.—Paul Brodeur, The New Yorker
Paul Brodeur, The New YorkerLove words? Need even more definitions?
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