VANDALISM Synonyms: 33 Similar and Opposite Words

vandalism

noun

ˈvan-də-ˌli-zəm

Definition of vandalism

as in vandalization

deliberate damaging or destroying of another's property anyone guilty of vandalism to university property will be expelled

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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 vandalism Harkins is the second person to face federal charges for vandalism at the Tesla location on State Line Road. — Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 25 Sep. 2026 Pasticceria Italia, a popular Italian bakery, shut down last winter after suffering two ceiling collapses from water leaks in two winters followed by vandalism damage. — Don Stacom, Hartford Courant, 24 Sep. 2026 Von Hassel was charged with vandalism and damage to property motivated by civil rights violations. — Terry Castleman, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026 According to a city news release, city police responded to an incident of antisemitic vandalism in a public park on Tuesday afternoon. — Joseph States, Chicago Tribune, 23 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for vandalism

Recent Examples of Synonyms for vandalism

Noun

Riverside has both a community center named for Chavez and a bronze statue — often the target of vandalization — on the Main Street pedestrian mall in the city’s downtown.

— Ryan Carter, Daily News, 19 Mar. 2026
Police said officers from the 116th Precinct had been alerted to the vandalization in the neighborhood and found 11 different police vehicles, both marked and unmarked, with damage.

— Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 13 Nov. 2025

Definition of vandalization

Noun

Sixty-five percent of Gazans agreed that armed resistance had failed to protect Palestinians and had instead brought destruction.

— Michael Robbins, Foreign Affairs, 2 Oct. 2026
Look past the 1951 setting, however, and the movie's anti-war message about humanity being on a crash course to destruction has never lost its poignancy.

— Richard Edwards, Space.com, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of destruction

Noun

Prosecutors concluded that widespread damage to the pool’s blue lining stemmed from construction problems after investigators were unable to find any evidence of intentional defacement.

— Paloma Chavez, PEOPLE, 5 Aug. 2026
Livestock theft, arson and the defacement of mosques are routinely reported.

— Majdi Mohammed, Los Angeles Times, 24 July 2026

Definition of defacement

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vandal

vandalism

vandalization

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“Vandalism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vandalism. Accessed 8 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of vandalism

noun

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