1
as in destroys
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
2
as in injures
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
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defaces
Verb
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If the infection is not contained by the body’s immune response, the bacteria destroys lung tissue which can trigger chest pain and coughing up of mucus or blood.—
Chase Hunter,
Mercury News,
31 Jan. 2026 -
For individual cellular damage, your body either repairs it or destroys the cell and replaces it.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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California law already criminalizes unsafe gun storage in certain situations, including when a child accesses a firearm and injures or kills someone.—
Grant Stringer,
Mercury News,
29 Dec. 2025
-
In self-defense, Franck's group injures one of the attackers.—
Emlyn Travis,
Entertainment Weekly,
26 Nov. 2025
Verb
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What damages a human being is sin.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026
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The progressive disease damages the protective cover around nerves called myelin in your central nervous system, according to the Cleveland Clinic.—
Virginia Chamlee,
PEOPLE,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The latest filing demolishes the timeworn claim that DOGE was infiltrated into Social Security in order to responsibly ferret out fraud and overspending.—
Business Columnist,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Jan. 2026
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If the city demolishes the building, the costs will be assessed to the property owner.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The picture exudes both grace and vulnerability, and hints at imperfection by way of a disconcerting, coral-like wrinkle that mars the foot’s heel.—
Chris Wiley,
New Yorker,
20 Dec. 2025
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Deadly holiday weekend mars broad crime drop The back-and-forth followed a Labor Day weekend of deadly violence in Chicago worse than in the previous two years, with seven people shot to death, according to preliminary Chicago Police Department reports.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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However, special considerations must be made for a brontosaurus who trashes London in the climax of the 1925 silent film The Lost World.—
James Grebey,
Vulture,
1 Dec. 2025
Verb
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These pressures could produce a tsunami that fractures the state’s fiscal foundation, self-inflicts a crisis ultimately demanding drastic cuts, and cripples its competitiveness.—
Andrew Rein,
New York Daily News,
6 Jan. 2026
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Scarface and friends attack the lab, and break out the kryptonite that cripples El and Kali.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
31 Dec. 2025
Verb
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When Mickey smashes the broom, each piece becomes a new water-fetching runaway robot.—
Bipul Sinha,
Fortune,
27 Jan. 2026
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If the spud bar smashes through, a person could too.—
Stephanie Pearson,
Outside,
14 Jan. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Defaces.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defaces. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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