COLONIZE Synonyms: 8 Similar and Opposite Words

colonize

verb

ˈkä-lə-ˌnīz

Definition of colonize

as in to inhabit

to supply with inhabitants believes that someday humans will be sent to colonize Mars

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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 colonize SpaceX, for instance, purportedly aims to save humanity from future environmental catastrophes, like the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs, by colonizing the Moon and Mars. — Marissa E. Yingling, The Conversation, 12 Aug. 2026 The waters around Sicily, which was colonized by the ancient Greeks and later conquered by the Romans around 240 BC, constituted one of the ancient world’s most important trade routes. — Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN Money, 10 Aug. 2026 For example, one species colonizes plant roots and can also parasitically infect cyst nematode eggs. — Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 6 Aug. 2026 No matter that the Brits, like the Bund, were battling Hitler—the Bundists knew that their allies were the colonized, marginal, and exploited. — Literary Hub, 6 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for colonize

Recent Examples of Synonyms for colonize

Verb

Each new home takes space once inhabited by bears, leaving the predators scrambling to adjust.

— Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 7 Sep. 2026
The actors, as is always the case in a Mike Leigh film, inhabit their roles with uncanny everyday verve.

— Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 5 Sep. 2026

Definition of inhabit

Verb

They are populated by characters who swing between extremes, people on the verge of disappearing one minute and of being too forward the next, either revealing too much or too little.

— Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 6 Sep. 2026
Artists and musicians had flocked to dirt-cheap rents, populating the neighborhood with small clubs and cheap tickets.

— Michael Calderone, Curbed, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of populate

Verb

The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter Carson McCullers’ remarkable debut novel tells a story of the American South, one set in Georgia and peopled with a cast of characters that exist in a rich, layered, and challenging reality.

— Caroline Rogers, Southern Living, 22 Aug. 2026
Today, this part of the South Side seems to be almost entirely peopled by Black families.

— Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 20 June 2026

Definition of people

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colonists

colonize

colonized

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“Colonize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/colonize. Accessed 9 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of colonize

verb

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