VAPORIZE Synonyms: 160 Similar and Opposite Words

vaporize

verb

ˈvā-pə-ˌrīz

Definition of vaporize

as in to destroy

to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of a lightning strike vaporized the tree

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 vaporize When the crash occurs, the object vaporizes and shock waves are sent reverberating through the Earth’s crust. — Megan Fahrney, ABC News, 24 July 2026 To retire them, the company plans to move many of them into a graveyard orbit, while others will be vaporized by burning up in Earth’s atmosphere during re-entry. — Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 9 July 2026 When a large body hits, some of the impact energy goes into vaporizing or melting rock right at the impact site. — Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 5 July 2026 Perhaps most disturbingly, there’s a short sequence of a massive pink bunny vaporizing people with its laser eyes. — Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 1 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for vaporize

Recent Examples of Synonyms for vaporize

Verb

The fire destroyed the historic Grand Canyon Lodge, cabins and other structures.

— ABC News, ABC News, 17 Sep. 2026
Mark Zuckerberg certainly wants no part of one, and cutthroat competition seems hard-coded into tech executives, who are rich enough not to need to win but wake up every morning trying to destroy each other anyway.

— Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 17 Sep. 2026

Definition of destroy

Verb

In New York City, light-up drones recreated the outlines of the twin towers that used to be a fixture in the skyline before they were demolished in the attacks.

— Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 11 Sep. 2026
One drone operator talks about going out for lunch or hanging out with their friends in Tel Aviv after demolishing people’s houses in Gaza from miles away.

— Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of demolish

Verb

To me, that would ruin all of the progress baseball has made over the last five years.

— Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 14 Sep. 2026
My personal concern is especially based on the fact that their huge need for additional electricity generation could very well ruin our ability to reduce carbon emissions and avoid a climate crisis.

— Martin Kushler, Washington Post, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of ruin

Verb

Last week a number of concerned mathematicians, many of them at the top of their subject, launched the Association for Human Mathematics (AHM)—an effort that was underway even before the earth-shattering Navier-Stokes news.

— Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 14 Sep. 2026
Maya’s fear of commitment mirrors the film’s fear of showing us anything truly ugly or grappling with the idea that our heroine is one of many, many people who lost someone during a society-shattering number of years.

— Jourdain Searles, HollywoodReporter, 14 Sep. 2026

Definition of shatter

Verb

All those entities hoovered up the dollars PG&E had available to pay out victims of the Camp Fire, and other blazes including the deadly 2017 North Bay fires that devastated Santa Rosa and outlying communities.

— Andrew Graham, Sacbee.com, 11 Sep. 2026
If passed, the measure would devastate school districts across the state by reducing services that students and families depend on.

— Erick Trevino, AZCentral.com, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of devastate

Verb

Here’s how the shift happened, what the ingredient actually does below the neck and how to fold it into a routine without wrecking your skin barrier.

— Hanna Wickes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Sep. 2026
Following instructions from the kidnappers (unbeknownst to his increasingly agitated comrades), Lee drives out to meet them for the exchange, only to wreck his car and become distracted saving a nearby woman, Hua (Moon Lee).

— Jake Cole, IndieWire, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of wreck

Verb

Bayern smashed the record for goals in the Bundesliga last season, with 122 in the 34 matches.

— James Horncastle, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
Of the 2,977 people who perished on 9/11, 2,753 were lost in the collapse of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center after two hijacked jetliners smashed into them.

— Mike Kelly, USA Today, 7 Sep. 2026

Definition of smash

Browse Nearby Words

vaporing

vaporize

vaporized

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Vaporize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vaporize. Accessed 19 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of vaporize

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

aggrandize

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Popular in Wordplay

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 18

Popular

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Games & Quizzes