raze
or rase
[reyz]
- to tear down; demolish; level to the ground: to raze a row of old buildings.
- to shave or scrape off.
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Origin of raze
1540–50; Middle English rasen < Middle French raser < *Vulgar Latin rāsāre to scrape, frequentative of Latin rādere to scrape
Synonym study
1. See destroy.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for raze
Contemporary Examples
In 1999, Mayor Dennis Archer sent in his own team of bulldozers to raze the art, but the artist stayed put and rebuilt.
Historical Examples
What, could it be true that they were going to fight again, were going to burn and raze Sedan!
The DownfallEmile Zola
Here an awful blast swept the house, as if to raze it to its foundations.
My New CurateP.A. Sheehan
There were 2,000 houses to raze and new structures to be built.
The only absolutely safe plan is to raze them from the earth.
Semiramis and Other PlaysOlive Tilford Dargan
Then the army was set to work, to raze the city to the ground.
For the TempleG. A. Henty
raze
rase
- to demolish (a town, buildings, etc) completely; level (esp in the phrase raze to the ground)
- to delete; erase
- archaic to graze
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Word Origin
C16: from Old French raser from Latin rādere to scrape
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for raze
v.
1540s, alteration of racen "pull or knock down" (a building or town), from earlier rasen (14c.) "to scratch, slash, scrape, erase," from Old French raser "to scrape, shave" (see rase). Related: Razed; razing.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper