displace

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verb dis·place \(ˌ)dis-ˈplās, di-ˈsplās\

Definition of displace

transitive verb
1a : to remove from the usual or proper place; specifically : to expel or force to flee from home or homeland displaced personsb : to remove from an office, status, or jobc obsolete : to drive out : banish
2a : to move physically out of position a floating object displaces waterb : to take the place of (as in a chemical reaction) : supplant

displaceable

play \-ˈplā-sə-bəl\ adjective

See displace defined for English-language learners

See displace defined for kids

Examples of displace in a Sentence

The war has displaced thousands of people.
The hurricane displaced most of the town's residents.
The closing of the factory has displaced many workers.
farming practices that displace large amounts of soil

Recent Examples of displace from the Web

About 900,000 of the city’s 2m people have been displaced; 700,000 are still homeless.

— The Economist, "Islamic State nears its end", 5 July 2017
The new Zumwalt-class destroyers displace 14,500 tons but the U.S. Navy still insists on calling them destroyers.

— kyle mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "China Launches Asia's Largest Surface Warship", 28 June 2017
The housing authority initially used the site as residences for public housing residents who had been displaced by the demolition of the large Clarksdale development.

— sheldon s. shafer, The Courier-Journal, "'Affordable' housing is coming to East Liberty", 26 June 2017
The idea behind an emergency fund is not to displace efforts to combat infectious disease but to ramp them up to meet a crushing temporary need.

— the editors, Scientific American, "Robust Emergency Fund Needed to Respond to Future Disease Outbreaks", 26 June 2017
As Tropical Storm Cindy moves into Alabama, bringing potential flooding to the state, the Alabama Cooperative Extension System is reminding residents to be wary of displaced, sometimes floating, fire ant colonies during and after flooding.

— dennis pillion, AL.com, "Beware floating fire ant colonies during floods", 21 June 2017
What appears to have been a clothes-dryer fire in a Cooper City garage has displaced a mother, her three daughters and their three dogs, officials said Friday.

— adam sacasa, Sun-Sentinel.com, "House fire displaces family, injures firefighter in Cooper City", 2 June 2017
More than 1,000 Lebanese civilians died in the conflict, and more than 1 million were displaced from their homes.

— max bearak, Washington Post, "Lebanon bans ‘Wonder Woman’ in protest against Israeli actress Gal Gadot", 1 June 2017
The Syrian civil war is the 21st century's deadliest conflict so far, with more than 450,000 killed and 12 million displaced.

— chicagotribune.com, "Hospitals become the front line in the Syrian civil war", 31 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'displace'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of displace

probably from Middle French desplacer, from des- dis- + place place

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First Known Use: 1549

See Words from the same year

Synonym Discussion of displace

replace, displace, supplant, supersede mean to put out of a usual or proper place or into the place of another. replace implies a filling of a place once occupied by something lost, destroyed, or no longer usable or adequate. replaced the broken window displace implies an ousting or dislodging. war had displaced thousands supplant implies either a dispossessing or usurping of another's place, possessions, or privileges or an uprooting of something and its replacement with something else. was abruptly supplanted in her affections by another supersede implies replacing a person or thing that has become superannuated, obsolete, or otherwise inferior. the new edition supersedes all previous ones

DISPLACE Defined for English Language Learners

displace

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verb

Definition of displace for English Language Learners

: to take the job or position of (someone or something)
: to force (people or animals) to leave the area where they live
: to remove (someone) from a job or position

DISPLACE Defined for Kids

displace

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verb dis·place \dis-ˈplās\

Definition of displace for Students

displaced

;

displacing

1 : to remove from the usual or proper place The fire displaced many forest animals.
2 : to take the place of : replace Chess displaced checkers as his favorite game.
3 : to move out of position A floating object displaces water.

displacement

\-mənt\ noun

Medical Dictionary

displace

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transitive verb dis·place \(ˈ)dis-ˈplās\

Medical Definition of displace

displaced

;

displacing

1a: to remove from the usual or proper place in heterotopia the gray portions of the cord are displaced so that patches of gray matter are scattered among the bundles of white fibers—R. L. Cecil et alb: to shift (an emotion or behavior) from a maladaptive or unacceptable object or form of outlet to a more adaptive or acceptable one displace punishable behavior by directing it towards things that cannot punish—B. F. Skinner
2: to set free from chemical combination by taking the place of zinc displaces the hydrogen of dilute acids
3: to subject to percolation