as in vandalism
deliberate damaging or destroying of another's property
the defacement of the school's property ended up costing hundreds of dollars
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Recent Examples of defacement
Palombo learned of the complete defacement through private messages on his social media channels.
—
Gabriele Regalbuto, FOXNews.com, 6 Nov. 2025
After a while, sticky notes appear, written by someone else who’s not exactly pleased about the doodler’s defacement of the only astronomy reference work in the school library.
—Caroline Carlson, Literary Hub, 3 Nov. 2025
The tactics have transcended low-level website defacements and data theft too and now extend to more destructive attacks on systems such as energy grids, gas pipelines, and undersea cables.
—Brian Walsh, Fortune, 7 Sep. 2025
Tuesday’s alert is the latest in what’s been a string of hateful defacements this summer.
—Tess Kenny, Chicago Tribune, 27 Aug. 2025
Gabriele Regalbuto, FOXNews.com, 6 Nov. 2025
After a while, sticky notes appear, written by someone else who’s not exactly pleased about the doodler’s defacement of the only astronomy reference work in the school library.
—Caroline Carlson, Literary Hub, 3 Nov. 2025
The tactics have transcended low-level website defacements and data theft too and now extend to more destructive attacks on systems such as energy grids, gas pipelines, and undersea cables.
—Brian Walsh, Fortune, 7 Sep. 2025
Tuesday’s alert is the latest in what’s been a string of hateful defacements this summer.
—Tess Kenny, Chicago Tribune, 27 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defacement
Noun
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Four decades later, despite a handful of mostly minor injuries (the Hill’s angle of incline is more than thirty degrees), a few instances of vandalism, and our fair share of brutal losses (some years more than others), the tradition endures.—
Elizabeth Hutchison Hicklin,
Southern Living,
8 Nov. 2025
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Angela Rollins, 62, was booked into the Marin County Jail on suspicion of cruelty to an animal, vandalism, burglary and battery.—
Cameron Macdonald,
Mercury News,
6 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Some city governments gave up on Columbus statues after multiple rounds of vandalization and decided to remove them, like in New Haven, Connecticut.—
Peter D'Abrosca,
FOXNews.com,
13 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Defacement.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defacement. Accessed 27 Nov. 2025.
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