Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- v. To level to the ground; demolish. See Synonyms at ruin.
- v. To scrape or shave off.
- v. Archaic To erase.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- See rase.
- n. An obsolete form of racc.
- n. A swinging fence set up in a watercourse to prevent the passage of cattle.
Wiktionary
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. obsolete A Shakespearean word (used once) supposed to mean the same as
race , a root. - v. To erase; to efface; to obliterate.
- v. To subvert from the foundation; to lay level with the ground; to overthrow; to destroy; to demolish.
WordNet 3.0
- v. tear down so as to make flat with the ground
Etymologies
- From Old French raser (Wiktionary)
- Middle English rasen, to scrape off, from Old French raser, from Vulgar Latin *rāsāre, frequentative of Latin rādere; see rash2. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Thor plans to raze the properties and erect a glass box structure that will be the retail base for a 350,000 square foot building.”
“A young white couple wants to raze the bungalow and build a big house there complete with koi pond, but their first encounter with their neighbors doesn't go as planned.”
“The building was shrouded in black as Deutsche Bank and its insurers fought over whether to raze it or clean it.”
The Huffington Post: Toxic Deutsche Bank Building Finally Coming Down
“As a local administrator, Mr. Zalmai spends a good deal of time these days complaining that the Americans failed to consult him about plans to raze one government office to build another.”
The Wall Street Journal: Launching the Missile That Made History
“While the units are subject to rent control, officials are concerned that Equity Residential would raze some of them and build higher buildings filled with market-rate apartments.”
The Wall Street Journal: Trials in Low-Rent Bastion in Silicon Valley
“You are advised to submit without further delay, for if I bring my army into your land, land, I will destroy your farms, slay your people, and raze your city.”
“The first season ends with Jimmy rousing Pufnstuf, who vows to raze the island if Witchipoo does not relinquish the Mayorship.”
MIND MELD: SciFi TV Shows That Deserve A Remake (with Videos)
“Contrary to the official version, in this story, word had spread from a servant in Lot's household, that the angels were there to raze the city.”
“Douglas Development is in the process of acquiring the necessary permits to raze a vacant auto lot at 2221 14th Street, NW.”
Matthew Yglesias » Latinos Selling Cars is Not That Baffling
“Cato Brooks, pastor of Tree of Life Missionary Baptist Church, works with the city to raze vacant buildings in the neighborhood.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘raze’.
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1100
abound, technology, branch of knowled..., prognosticate, automaton, matron, an older married ..., realm, special field of ..., kingdom, annals, historical records and 981 more...
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GRE 2014
abate, abdicate, abase, aberrant, abeyance, abhor, abjure, abortive, abound, abrasive, abreast, abridge and 1577 more...
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GRE Barrons Wordlist
A complete Barron's Wordlist for GRE preparation. Your online flashcard replacement.
abase, abash, abate, abbreviate, abdicate, aberrant, aberration, abet, abeyance, abhor, abject, abjure and 4087 more...
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Cattle
cattle, cow, beef, steer, heifer, calf, bull, cattle call, Black Angus, Hereford, Holstein, Dwarf Lulu and 402 more...
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gangster
random gangster lingo and street slang with extra absurdities.
( open list, randomness )
related:
http://www....swagga, chinga, slams, blitzy, earf, manor, code name, rekkid, weight, feather, kong, swisher and 323 more...
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LIT - Iliad - key words and protagonists
abduct, abducting, abductor, Achaea, Achaean, Achilles, advise, Aegean, Aegean Sea, Aegina, aegis, Aeneas and 713 more...
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I am : violent
Destructive verbs that speed up entropy. (Still working on definition of what I want; may add adjectives later.)
destroy, wreck, thrash, trash, beat up, annihilate, exterminate, disembowel, eviscerate, disintegrate, explode, bomb and 41 more...
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The Bucolic Abattoir
Words which, when spoken, suggest something other than their real meaning.
bucolic, fungible, brouhaha, narthex, restive, inflammable, invaluable, raze, pulchritude, noisome, fatuous, terrific and 21 more...
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[Open] Frequentative
“A verb which denotes the frequent occurrence or repetition of an action, as . . . waggle from wag.” — Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia.
Other examples include bobble (bob), bustle (b...dartle, stutter, agitate, dabble, waggle, aid, argue, daunt, expect, excite, espouse, dictate and 77 more...
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Energetic
braze, raze, brisance, brisant, rive, catalyze, whipsaw, crack, actinic, sublimate, animate, vitalize and 88 more...
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List 2(starting at 260)
mammoth, overt, valor, aspire, relegate, bias, incisive, scurry, precipitate, singular, inveigh, repulse and 48 more...
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Homonyms That Are Antonyms
Got this idea from a Bizarro Cartoon. Let's find some others!
raise, raze, bate, bait, chilly, chile, complacent, complaisant, aweful, awful, reck, wreck and 8 more...
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GRE 1100
drudgery, implore, hapless, nuance, wrest, incipient, inadvertent, tremulous, bristle, euphemism, disdain, pugnacious and 346 more...
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Staggers vocab: The Heart is Lonely ...
deluge, volubility, blasphemy, acrid, raze, brooding, decorum
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ymmez22's Words
despotic, fiefdom, demagogue, vignette, chavvy, esoteric, stalwarts, unpalatable, eradicated, rapacious, repugnant, zeitgeist and 89 more...
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1100 words you need to know
GRE words
voracious, indiscriminate, eminent, steeped, replete, abound, technology, prognosticate, automaton, matron, paradox, realm and 288 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for raze.

ruzuzu Perhaps the Centers for Disease Control were thinking of raccoons. We could try to ask their raccoonnookkeeper. Jul 3, 2012
bilby CDC says 'An obsolete form of racc' yet has no entry for racc. Tyop? Jul 3, 2012
oroboros The un-raise. Sep 27, 2010