Definition of efface
effaced
;effacing
transitive verb
1 : to eliminate or make indistinct by or as if by wearing away a surface coins with dates effaced by wear; also : to cause to vanish daylight effaced the stars
2 : to make (oneself) modestly or shyly inconspicuous
effacer
nounIndulge Your Inner Word Nerd
Examples of efface in a Sentence
coins with dates effaced by wear
a memory effaced by time
Recent Examples of efface from the Web
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But that confrontation and a string of others in the months since have given Mr. Shaub, a self-effacing career bureaucrat more comfortable parsing legal arguments and wonkish ethics guidelines, the reputation of a fighter.
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Hoekstra, a likable and self-effacing man of palpable passions, seems eternally upbeat, even when talking about how his more than 30-year-long newspaper career came to a close in March 2014.
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That this obsession hasn't consumed Cooper is a testament to her mettle, sharpened over 22 years of brutal, self-effacing critiques while walking a mental tight rope during her prolific career.
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Quiet and self-effacing, Vance was a study in contrasts with his flamboyant predecessor Henry Kissinger.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'efface'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of efface
Middle English, from Anglo-French esfacer, effacer, from e- + face face
EFFACE Defined for English Language Learners
efface
playDefinition of efface for English Language Learners
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: to cause (something) to fade or disappear
EFFACE Defined for Kids
efface
playDefinition of efface for Students
effaced
;effacing
: to cause to fade or disappear … she wished to efface the memory of yesterday's failure … — Louisa May Alcott, Little Women
Learn More about efface
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See words that rhyme with efface Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for efface Spanish Central: Translation of efface Nglish: Translation of efface for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of efface for Arabic speakers
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