replace

[ri-pleys]

verb (used with object)

replaced, replacing 

1. to assume the former role, position, or function of; substitute for (a person or thing).

   Electricity has replaced gas in lighting.

   Synonyms: succeed

2. to provide a substitute or equivalent in the place of.

   to replace a broken dish.

3. to restore; return; make good.

   to replace a sum of money borrowed.

   Synonyms: repay, refund

4. to restore to a former or the proper place.

   to replace the vase on the table.

replace

/ rɪˈpleɪs /

verb

1. to take the place of; supersede

   the manual worker is being replaced by the machine

2. to substitute a person or thing for (another which has ceased to fulfil its function); put in place of

   to replace an old pair of shoes

3. to put back or return; restore to its rightful place

Other Word Forms

• replaceable adjective
• replaceability noun
• replacer noun
• nonreplaceable adjective
• quasi-replaced adjective
• unreplaceable adjective
• unreplaced adjective
• well-replaced adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of replace¹

First recorded in 1585–95; re- + place

Synonym Study

Replace, supersede, supplant refer to putting one thing or person in place of another. To replace is to take the place of, to succeed: Ms. Jones will replace Mr. Smith as president. Supersede implies that that which is replacing another is an improvement: The computer has superseded the typewriter. Supplant implies that that which takes the other's place has ousted the former holder and usurped the position or function, especially by art or fraud: to supplant a former favorite.

Example Sentences

The seven-member Fed board of governors in Washington could replace any of them, though it hasn’t ever done so, David Wessel, a senior fellow at at the Brookings Institution, noted in a recent paper.

Read more on MarketWatch

AI needs electricity to train models that replace workers.

Read more on MarketWatch

Private credit, which includes corporate loans, real-estate debt and complex asset-backed securities, has surged as fund managers like Apollo Global Management and KKR replaced banks as the top lenders in some markets.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Argyle House could be replaced by a "mixed-use" development featuring a hotel, residential properties, office and retail space.

Read more on BBC

AI is a “force multiplier” that will lift productivity across all lines of business, particularly in engineering, where significant increases are already visible, but not a means to replace human decision-making, Bidarkoppa said.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• change 
• follow 
• oust 
• recover 
• reinstate 
• restore 
• succeed 
• supplant 
• supply 
• take over 
• take over from www.thesaurus.com