vandalism
Americannoun
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deliberately mischievous or malicious destruction or damage of property.
vandalism of public buildings.
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the conduct or spirit characteristic of the Vandals.
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willful or ignorant destruction of artistic or literary treasures.
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a vandalic act.
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of vandalism
Explanation
Vandalism is the destruction of someone else's property. Some people think of graffiti as public art, while others dismiss it as nothing but vandalism. If you damage public or private property on purpose, you've committed the crime of vandalism. The range of vandalism can vary from carving your initials in a desk at school to tearing pages out of a library book to breaking windows of a building. The word vandal comes from the Vandals, the Germanic tribe that attacked Rome in 455. The tribe's name meant "wanderer," but the word vandal was used in the 1600s to mean "destroyer of what is beautiful."
Vocabulary lists containing vandalism
Frindle
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocabulary for September 30–October 6, 2023
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Banned Book Club
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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.
The newly disclosed contractor reports offer the clearest explanation yet for what went wrong Meanwhile, the Interior Department has continued to maintain that vandalism occurred and said the contractor is responsible for repairing the liner.
From Salon ● Sep. 12, 2026
These are not the kind of streets where you would expect to see coordinated vandalism.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
Mike Bland, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles Police Department, said on Tuesday that the department had not received a report about the vandalism.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
Flock Safety said it would add safeguards to its surveillance products to address potential abuse by law enforcement, after months of backlash and vandalism of its AI-enabled camera system.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
“Yes, well sure . . . I—I guess so ... I mean, it’s not like anybody’s been hurt . . . umm ... I mean, it’s not like vandalism or stealing or something like that...”
From "Frindle" by Andrew Clements
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.
