DEFACEMENTS Synonyms: 148 Similar and Opposite Words

deface 1 of 2

verb

di-ˈfās

as in to vandalize

to deliberately cause the damage or destruction of another's property the principal vowed to get the punks who defaced the statue in front of the school

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to injure

to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of years of wear had defaced the fine engraving on the coins

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

defacement

2 of 2

noun

as in vandalism

deliberate damaging or destroying of another's property the defacement of the school's property ended up costing hundreds of dollars

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 deface

Verb

Last summer, Zeevi, who owns an HVAC company in San Jose, told KTVU that the vans at his shop were defaced with swastikas. —

Lucy Hodgman, San Francisco Chronicle, 10 Mar. 2026 Denilson Pires was arrested and charged with carrying a firearm without a license, possession of ammunition without an FID card, and defacing a firearm serial number. —

Colleen Cronin, Boston Herald, 10 Mar. 2026

Noun

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 See All Example Sentences for deface

Recent Examples of Synonyms for deface

Verb

Twenty-two of those flags were vandalized in March 2025, prompting the department to replace them — and consider a more permanent memorial, the Idaho Statesman reported at the time.

— Rose Evans April 4, Idaho Statesman, 4 Apr. 2026
While some students and staff seemed to appreciate the bots, plenty more did not, taking it upon themselves to vandalize, harass, and knock the fellas over at every opportunity.

— Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 2 Apr. 2026