as in inhabiting
to supply with inhabitants
believes that someday humans will be sent to colonize Mars
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Recent Examples of colonizing
Imagine crossing thousands of miles of open ocean — no rest stops, no landmarks — and somehow colonizing a remote archipelago to start entirely new lineages.
—
Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 6 Apr. 2026
This lines up with when colonizing Greeks were believed to have introduced viticulture — cultivating grapevines — to France, after founding the city of Marseille.
—CBS News, 24 Mar. 2026
The mythologies of the medical ass could blossom, like the oral folklore of a tribe allowed to retain its own myths without the colonizing interference of invaders.
—Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026
The creatures rapidly spread along the interconnected coastal highways of a changing world, colonizing new habitats just as the Age of Dinosaurs began around 252 million years ago.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 23 Feb. 2026
That 16th century term for Catholics became a 17th century term for Protestants, as Britain set about colonizing the Irish province of Ulster with Scottish Presbyterians.
—Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 18 Feb. 2026
The mega-rocket’s next liftoff could happen as soon as March, according to Elon Musk, who recently said his commercial space firm has shifted its focus from colonizing Mars to first setting up a base on the moon.
—Brandon Lingle, San Antonio Express-News, 11 Feb. 2026
Musk has regularly expressed his ambitions in space travel, previously suggesting colonizing Mars.
—Washington Examiner Staff, The Washington Examiner, 9 Feb. 2026
Starship launches from Starbase Musk has often spoken about his vision of colonizing other worlds in our solar system to ensure humanity's survival in the event of an extinction-level even on Earth.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 9 Feb. 2026
Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 6 Apr. 2026
This lines up with when colonizing Greeks were believed to have introduced viticulture — cultivating grapevines — to France, after founding the city of Marseille.
—CBS News, 24 Mar. 2026
The mythologies of the medical ass could blossom, like the oral folklore of a tribe allowed to retain its own myths without the colonizing interference of invaders.
—Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026
The creatures rapidly spread along the interconnected coastal highways of a changing world, colonizing new habitats just as the Age of Dinosaurs began around 252 million years ago.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 23 Feb. 2026
That 16th century term for Catholics became a 17th century term for Protestants, as Britain set about colonizing the Irish province of Ulster with Scottish Presbyterians.
—Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 18 Feb. 2026
The mega-rocket’s next liftoff could happen as soon as March, according to Elon Musk, who recently said his commercial space firm has shifted its focus from colonizing Mars to first setting up a base on the moon.
—Brandon Lingle, San Antonio Express-News, 11 Feb. 2026
Musk has regularly expressed his ambitions in space travel, previously suggesting colonizing Mars.
—Washington Examiner Staff, The Washington Examiner, 9 Feb. 2026
Starship launches from Starbase Musk has often spoken about his vision of colonizing other worlds in our solar system to ensure humanity's survival in the event of an extinction-level even on Earth.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 9 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for colonizing
Verb
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Characters are constantly zipping through the two-story rotating set, from classroom to kitchen to banquet hall, inhabiting their stories in alternating snippets.—
Justin Davidson,
Vulture,
7 Apr. 2026
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That cross-continental team pooled expertise to confirm the frog as a distinct species — one that had been quietly inhabiting its mountainous ecosystem, unrecognized by science until now.—
Hanna Wickes,
Miami Herald,
5 Apr. 2026
Verb
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As more spacecraft are slated to start populating this area thanks to private companies launching their own satellites and landers (more on that shortly), resolving how to remain safe in cislunar space is top of mind.—
Monisha Ravisetti,
Space.com,
7 Apr. 2026
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Geographic isolation and cold temperatures have actually hindered snakes from populating the wilds of many islands; New Zealand, Iceland and Greenland are all also snake-free.—
K. R. Callaway,
Scientific American,
17 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Colonizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/colonizing. Accessed 11 Apr. 2026.
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