as in destroying
to deliberately cause the damage or destruction of another's property
he decided to vandalize the store because the owner had kicked him out
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Recent Examples of vandalizing
Man accused of vandalizing Vance's home ID'd as criminal history is revealed.
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FOXNews.com, 6 Jan. 2026
Saturday to talk to the man about allegedly vandalizing cars, Irvine police spokesman Kyle Oldoerp said.
—City News Service, Oc Register, 4 Jan. 2026
District Attorney Summer Stephan reminded the crowd that San Diego is not free of its own tragedies spurned by antisemitic hate and bigotry, including instances of hateful graffiti vandalizing a synagogue and destruction of a menorah at The Chabad House at San Diego State University.
—Caleb Lunetta, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Dec. 2025
An arrest has been made after a man was caught on video knocking over and vandalizing a menorah outside the Miami-Dade County Tax Collector's Office on Monday night, police confirmed.
—Steven Yablonski, CBS News, 23 Dec. 2025
In Dhaka, videos circulating on social media showed mobs vandalizing the offices of the country’s largest daily newspaper, Prothom Alo, as well as the Daily Star.
—CNN Money, 19 Dec. 2025
In November, a Utah woman was ordered to pay $15,000 in fines and restitution after vandalizing petroglyphs outside of Kanab.
—Owen Clarke, Outside, 10 Dec. 2025
He was also charged with vandalizing a bench at the Foltz Criminal Justice Center in October 2024 while in court for an unrelated incident.
—Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE, 29 Nov. 2025
After spending more than a week in detention, the 13-year-old accused of vandalizing a statue of Marty Brennanman has gone home with his maternal grandmother.
—Cameron Knight, Cincinnati Enquirer, 6 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vandalizing
Verb
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By the 1960s, gas flares and untreated waste spillage were destroying their forests.—
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And there is a risk of the parasites becoming dormant for years before reactivating and destroying a new cornea.—
Verb
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Nunez-Romano was also charged with possessing a firearm without a firearm identification card and defacing the serial number of a firearm.—
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The lyrics have the same anesthetized ennui as in emo rap and the new wave of online rock, but the beats are menacingly new and dead-set on defacing your consciousness.—
Verb
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The move came after the Office of County Administration released December cost estimates for demolishing the building and renovating it.—
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Fully reopening Leetsdale Drive is contingent on demolishing parts of the charred apartment complex that are still standing, Murphy said.—
Verb
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As Hodges stood there, scared and vulnerable, the man grabbed his baton and bashed him on the head with it, rupturing his lip and smashing his skull.—
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The man accused of smashing windows on Vice President JD Vance's home with a hammer is facing separate prosecutions in state and federal court.—
Verb
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And, from this week’s issue, Nicola Twilley’s reporting on another lingering effect of the wildfires—smoke taint that is ruining grapes and threatening California’s wine industry.—
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The video then shows the man asking if the situation was ruining Kaleel's Christmas.—
Verb
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Cooper later deleted the posts, but Broncos fans absolutely loved him for trashing the Chiefs.—
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Songz was accused of trashing the Joe Louis Arena stage in Detroit in 2016 after his microphone was shut off during a show.—
Verb
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The plaintiffs asked the judge to issue a temporary restraining order, claiming that the ICE surge and raids are continuously violating the rights of citizens.—
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Local leaders say the government is violating free speech and other constitutional rights with the surge of law enforcement.—
Verb
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One person was taken into custody after a fire ripped through a synagogue in Mississippi, heavily damaging the historic house of worship in what authorities say was an act of arson.—
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Freezing foods quickly helps preserve texture by preventing large ice crystals from damaging delicate cell walls.—
Cite this Entry
“Vandalizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vandalizing. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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