as in populated
to supply with inhabitants
believes that someday humans will be sent to colonize Mars
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 colonized
The mine sits just north of the Duck Valley Reservation on the Sho-Pai’s homelands, an area their ancestors were forcibly removed from over a century ago when Europeans colonized the West and corralled them into the remote reservation with little resources on the Idaho-Nevada border.
—
Angela Palermo, Idaho Statesman, 19 Aug. 2025
Today, the estuary is home to more than 120 otters and is the only one along the West coast that has been significantly colonized by southern sea otters.
—Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY, 20 Dec. 2024
Vascular plants and animals first colonized the land, and the planet was never the same again.
—Interesting Engineering, 20 Dec. 2024
However, one lineage colonized Australia around 50 million years ago and evolved independently after the continent separated from Antarctica.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024
By the time Dreyfus arrived, the trio of islands off the coast of French Guiana, part of the territory that France colonized in the 1640s, had long been collectively known as Devil’s Island.
—Rob Crossan, JSTOR Daily, 13 Dec. 2024
Carl Court / Getty Images Aliyev and others whose countries have developed more recently, many of which were colonized by the West, say they should not be punished economically for the past emissions of wealthier nations.
—Mithil Aggarwal, NBC News, 23 Nov. 2024
Advertisement The species has colonized new regions when transported on ships’ hulls or in ballast water that is drained in ports.
—Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 6 Nov. 2024
When all one sees is colonized and colonizers, certain experiences register and others do not.
—Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 7 Oct. 2024
Angela Palermo, Idaho Statesman, 19 Aug. 2025
Today, the estuary is home to more than 120 otters and is the only one along the West coast that has been significantly colonized by southern sea otters.
—Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY, 20 Dec. 2024
Vascular plants and animals first colonized the land, and the planet was never the same again.
—Interesting Engineering, 20 Dec. 2024
However, one lineage colonized Australia around 50 million years ago and evolved independently after the continent separated from Antarctica.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024
By the time Dreyfus arrived, the trio of islands off the coast of French Guiana, part of the territory that France colonized in the 1640s, had long been collectively known as Devil’s Island.
—Rob Crossan, JSTOR Daily, 13 Dec. 2024
Carl Court / Getty Images Aliyev and others whose countries have developed more recently, many of which were colonized by the West, say they should not be punished economically for the past emissions of wealthier nations.
—Mithil Aggarwal, NBC News, 23 Nov. 2024
Advertisement The species has colonized new regions when transported on ships’ hulls or in ballast water that is drained in ports.
—Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 6 Nov. 2024
When all one sees is colonized and colonizers, certain experiences register and others do not.
—Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 7 Oct. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for colonized
Verb
-
Just around the corner, about 210 students populated Johnson Elementary on a campus meant for 480.—
Mila Koumpilova,
ProPublica,
9 Sep. 2025
-
Unlike the other Planet of the Apes entries, this one would be populated with nearly all CGI apes, one of which Peckham had been asked to audition to play.—
Mia Galuppo,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Once inhabited by some of the city’s wealthiest families, Troost was the target of restrictive covenants in the early 20th century that drew a distinct line of separation.—
Kacen Bayless,
Kansas City Star,
9 Sep. 2025
-
Worden tells me in an interview that Harvard scholar Robin Wordsworth, his co-author on a recent Red Planet study and one of the top American experts on terraforming Mars, is now designing compact astronaut outposts that can be positioned inside lava tubes and speedily inhabited.—
Kevin Holden Platt,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Colonized.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/colonized. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share