vanish

American

[van-ish] / ˈvæn ɪʃ /

verb (used without object)

to disappear from sight, especially quickly; become invisible.

The frost vanished when the sun came out.

Synonyms:

evanesce

Antonyms:

appear
to go away, especially furtively or mysteriously; disappear by quick departure.

The thief vanished in the night.
to disappear by ceasing to exist; come to an end.

The pain vanished after he took an aspirin.
Mathematics. (of a number, quantity, or function) to become zero.

verb (used with object)

to cause to disappear.

noun

Phonetics. the last part of a vowel sound when it differs noticeably in quality from the main sound, as the faint (ē) at the end of the (ā) in the pronunciation of pain.

vanish British

/ ˈvænɪʃ /

verb

to disappear, esp suddenly or mysteriously
to cease to exist; fade away
maths to become zero

"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

noun

rare phonetics the second and weaker of the two vowels in a falling diphthong

"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

vanish Idioms

see under into thin air.

Related Words

See disappear.

Other Word Forms

nonvanishing adjective
outvanish verb (used with object)
unvanishing adjective
vanisher noun
vanishingly adverb
vanishment noun

Etymology

Origin of vanish

1275–1325; Middle English vanisshen, vanissen < Middle French evaniss-, long stem of e ( s ) vanir ≪ Latin ex- ex- ¹ + vānēscere to pass away, equivalent to vān ( us ) vain + -ēscere inchoative suffix

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.

To lose it would mean to vanish a snapshot of what makes this city glorious.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 13, 2026

In the worst cases, it gives the audience one last chance to laugh in someone’s face before they vanish into obscurity.

From Salon • Mar. 6, 2026

The market is pricing outcomes that would require these companies to simply vanish, debts unpaid, into the AI-disrupted void.

From Barron's • Feb. 24, 2026

In the chaos that followed, thousands of terrorists were able to escape, vanish, and melt back into the wild.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 2, 2026

I looked at Ultima and saw her smile vanish.

From "Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023