metastasize
Americanverb (used without object)
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Pathology. (of malignant cells or disease-producing organisms) to spread to other parts of the body by way of the blood or lymphatic vessels or membranous surfaces.
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to spread injuriously.
Street gangs have metastasized in our city.
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to transform, especially into a dangerous form.
The KGB metastasized after the fall of the Soviet Union. Truth metastasized into lurid fantasy.
verb
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pathol (esp of cancer cells) to spread to a new site in the body via blood or lymph vessels
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(of a problem) to deteriorate or spread into new areas
Etymology
Origin of metastasize
First recorded in 1905–10; metastas(is) + -ize
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.
That’s manifested in a widespread selloff that has started to metastasize beyond purveyors of enterprise software offerings.
From MarketWatch • Feb. 14, 2026
Faruq sees it when he’s compelled to help with births in the compound’s horse stables, but he also witnesses it metastasize around the humans.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 12, 2025
My mom’s cancer was diagnosed late and she was bounced from one provider to another, ultimately allowing her disease to metastasize past the point of no return.
From Salon • Dec. 6, 2024
These subtler harms metastasize out of the loneliness that comes from being forced to stand between two communities.
From Seattle Times • Jan. 29, 2024
Without those limitations, copyright law will bloat and metastasize into a claim of monopoly, or at least control, over the very architectures of our communications technology.
From The Public Domain Enclosing the Commons of the Mind by Boyle, James
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.
