vacate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to give up possession or occupancy of.
to vacate an apartment.
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to give up or relinquish (an office, position, etc.).
She recently vacated her position as president of the organization.
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to render inoperative; deprive of validity; void; annul.
to vacate a legal judgment.
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to cause to be empty or unoccupied; make vacant.
to vacate one's mind of worries.
verb (used without object)
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to withdraw from occupancy; surrender possession.
We will have to vacate when our lease expires.
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to give up or leave a position, office, etc.
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to leave; go away.
verb
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to cause (something) to be empty, esp by departing from or abandoning it
to vacate a room
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(also intr) to give up the tenure, possession, or occupancy of (a place, post, etc); leave or quit
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law
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to cancel or rescind
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to make void or of no effect; annul
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Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of vacate
First recorded in 1635–45; from Latin vacātus, past participle of vacāre “to be empty”; cf. vacuum
Explanation
If someone asks you to vacate the room, you'd better pack up your things and go. When you vacate something, you leave it behind, usually empty. When you stay at a hotel, you're required to vacate the room at check-out time. The same goes for the last day of your lease on your apartment or after closing on the sale of your house. In all of these cases, you've got to get going and take all of your stuff with you. The verb vacate can also be used in conjunction with leaving a job, often an appointed office.
Vocabulary lists containing vacate
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Burnham was cleared on Friday to stand in the by-election by Labour's ruling National Executive Committee, after the constituency's current MP said he would vacate it to make way for the Manchester mayor.
From BBC • May 16, 2026
The Justice Department moved to vacate a ruling that blocked its subpoenas to the Federal Reserve in a probe of Chair Jerome Powell.
From Barron's • May 4, 2026
The county inspected the property and ordered residents to vacate nine buildings.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026
Just days before the defendants’ deadline to file their opening brief with the federal appeals court, the DOJ filed the motion to vacate the convictions altogether.
From Salon • Apr. 15, 2026
Instead, she was told to vacate her Navy quarters and return to her old office at the Coast Guard.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
