Word.ws English Dictionary

raze

UK/ɹeɪz/

More pronunciations (1)Fewer pronunciations

Australia/ɹæɪz/

raze verb: to level or tear down (a building, a town, etc.) to the ground; to demolish. Also the obsolete spelling of race.

raze: to level or tear down (a building, a town, etc.) to the ground; to demolish
Image: Grendelkhan, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Verb

raze (third-person singular simple present razes, present participle razing, simple past and past participle razed)

  1. (transitive) To level or tear down (a building, a town, etc.) to the ground; to demolish.
    • The fortreſſe was raſed and beaten downe to the erthe⸝ whiche had coſt moche the makynge therof: […]1523 February 7 (Gregorian calendar), Johan Froyssart [i.e., Jean Froissart], “Howe the Frẽche Kyng Sent a Great Nauy to the See⸝ ⁊ howe Duyers Townes were Brent in Englande: ⁊ howe the Duke of...
    • Theſe are his ſubſtance, ſinevves, armes, and ſtrength, / VVith vvhich he yoaketh your rebellious Neckes, / Razeth your Cities, and ſubuerts your Tovvnes, / And in a moment makes them deſolate.1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...
  2. (figuratively, transitive) To completely remove (someone or something), especially from a place, a situation, etc.; also, to remove from existence; to destroy, to obliterate.
    • Yet at the laſt, caſting with my ſelf, that yͤ heat of thy loue might cleane be razed with yͤ coldnes of my letter, I thought it good to commit an inconuenience, that I might preuent a miſchiefe, chuſing rather to cut thée off ſhort by rigour, then to giue thée any iot of hope by ſilence.1580, Iohn Lyly [i.e., John Lyly], “To Philautus”, in Euphues and His England. […], London: […] [Thomas East] for Gabriell Cawood, […], →OCLC, folio 71, recto
    • VVithout reſpect of ſex, degree or age. / He raceth all his foes vvith fire and ſvvord.c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC...
  3. (also, figuratively, transitive) To erase (a record, text, etc.), originally by scraping; to rub out, to scratch out.
    • Suppleyng to Fame, I besought her grace, / And that it wolde please her, full tenderly I prayd, / Owt of her bokis Apollo to rase.1523, John Skelton, “A Ryght Delectable Tratyse vpon a Goodly Garlande or Chapelet of Laurell, […]”, in Alexander Dyce, editor, The Poetical Works of John Skelton: […], volume I, London: Thomas Rodd...
    • The wound alas happe in some other place, / From whence no toole away the skar can race.c. 1528–1541 (date written), Thomas Wyatt, “[Sonnets] Sonnet 31”, in A[gnes] K[ate] Foxwell, editor, The Poems of Sir Thomas Wiat […], volume I, London: Hodder and Stoughton [for the] University of...
  4. (regional, transitive, archaic except UK) To wound (someone or part of their body) superficially; to graze.
    • [T]he ſvvorde more mercifull then hee to himſelfe, vvith the ſlipping of the pommel, the point ſvvarued, and razed him but vpon the ſide: […]a. 1587, Philippe Sidnei [i.e., Philip Sidney], “[The Thirde Booke] Chapter 24”, in [Fulke Greville; Matthew Gwinne; John Florio], editors, The Countesse of Pembrokes Arcadia [The New Arcadia]...
    • For vvas he not in the neareſt Neighbourhood to Death? And might not the Bullet, that perhaps raſed his Cheek, have as eaſily gone into his Head?1685 March 3 (date delivered; Gregorian calendar); first published 1692, Robert South, “A Sermon Preached at Westminster-Abbey, February 22. 168⁴⁄₅.”, in Twelve Sermons Preached upon Several...
  5. (obsolete, transitive) To alter (a document) by erasing parts of it.
    • This indenture is raced all the worlde may ſe it: Ceſte indenture eſt faulcée tout le monde le peult veoyr.1530 July 28 (Gregorian calendar), Iohan Palsgraue [i.e., John Palsgrave], “The Table of Verbes”, in Lesclarcissement de la langue francoyse⸝ […], [London]: […] [Richard Pynson] fynnysshed by Iohan...
    • But I vvill take another order novv, / And race th'eternall Regiſter of time: […]1594, Christopher Marlowe, Thomas Nash[e], The Tragedie of Dido Queene of Carthage: […], London: […] Widdowe Orwin, for Thomas Woodcocke, […], →OCLC, Act III, signature A3, recto
  6. (obsolete, transitive) To carve (a line, mark, etc.) into something; to incise, to inscribe; also, to carve lines, marks, etc., into (something); to engrave.
    • Generally, Barbarous People, that goe Naked, doe not onely paint Themſelues, but they povvnce and raze their Skinne, that the Painting may not be taken forth; And make it into VVorks.1627 (indicated as 1626), Francis [Bacon], “VIII. Century. [Experiment Solitary, Touching Paintings of the Body.]”, in Sylua Syluarum: Or A Naturall Historie. In Ten Centuries. […], London: […]...
    • [Y]ou muſt mark the out-lines of your intended Hinge, […] either vvith Chalk, or elſe raſe upon the Plate vvith the corner of the Cold-Chiſſel, or any other hardned Steel that vvill ſcratch a bright ſtroke upon the Plate: […]1678 January 11 – February 11 (Gregorian calendar), Joseph Moxon, “Numb[er] II. Applied to the Making of Hinges, Locks, Keys, Screws and Nuts Small and Great.”, in Mechanick Exercises, or The...
  7. (obsolete, transitive) To remove (something) by scraping; also, to cut or shave (something) off.
  8. (obsolete, transitive) To rub lightly along the surface of (something); brush against, to graze.
    • And novv [the Rhine] by this time augmented vvith ſnovv, melted and reſolved into vvater, and raſing as it goes the high bankes vvith their curving reaches, entreth into a round and vaſt lake (vvhich the Rhætians dvvelling thereby, call Brigantia) […]1609, Ammianus Marcellinus, “[The XV. Booke.] Chapter III. Warre against the Lentienses, a People of Alemaine. The Description of the Lake Brigantia. The Romane Armie Discomfited and Put to Flight...
    • Sometimes, his feet raſed the ſurface of the water; and, at others, the ſkylight almoſt flattened his noſe.1786, [William Beckford], translated by [Samuel Henley], An Arabian Tale, from an Unpublished Manuscript: […] [Vathek], London: […] J[oseph] Johnson, […], →OCLC, page 103
  9. (obsolete, transitive) To scrape (something), with or as if with a razor, to remove things from its surface; also, to reduce (something) to small pieces by scraping; to grate.
    • And you are a ſoule, ſo vvhite, and ſo chaſte, / A table ſo ſmooth, and ſo nevvly ra'ſte, / As nothing cald foule, / Dare approach vvith a blot, / Or any leaſt ſpot; […]1621 August 13 (first performance; Gregorian calendar), Ben Jonson, “The Masque of the Gypsies”, in Q. Horatius Flaccus: His Art of Poetry. […], London: […] J[ohn] Okes, for John Benson […]...
  10. (obsolete, transitive) To shave (someone or part of their body) with a razor, etc.
    • [A] ſharpe worde moued thée, when other whiles a ſworde will not, then a friendly checke killeth thée, when a raſor cannot raſe thée.1580, Iohn Lyly [i.e., John Lyly], “Euphues to Him, that was His Philautus”, in Euphues and His England. […], London: […] [Thomas East] for Gabriell Cawood, […], →OCLC, folio 82, verso
    • Do you fancy him retir'd that […] conſumes his time trifling amongſt Barbers, razing and ſprucing himſelf, Povvdering, Combing, and ſummoning a Council upon every Hair?1667, J[ohn] Evelyn, Publick Employment and an Active Life, with Its Appanages, such as Fame, Command, Riches, Conversation, &c. Preferred to Solitude: […], London: […] J. M. for H[enry] Herringman...
  11. (also, figuratively, obsolete, transitive) To cut, scratch, or tear (someone or something) with a sharp object; to lacerate, to slash.
    • Buckles and agglettes at vnwares, ſhall race his bowe, a thinge both euill for the fight, ⁊ perillous for freatinge.1545, Roger Ascham, “The Seconde Booke”, in Toxophilus, the Schole, or Partitions of Shooting […], [new] edition, London: […] Thomas Marshe, published 1571, →OCLC, folio 38, recto
    • His death did raze hir heart.1569 (date written), [Giovanni Boccaccio], “The Tenth Historie”, in Tragicall Tales […], London: […] Abell Ieffs, […], published 1587, →OCLC, folio 140, recto
  12. (intransitive, obsolete) To carve lines, marks, etc., into something.
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  1. (intransitive, obsolete) To graze or rub lightly along a surface.
    • Betwene theſe Ilandes and the continente, he entered into ſoo narowe ſtreyghtes, that he coulde ſcarſely turne backe the ſhippes: And theſe alſo ſo ſhalowe, that the keele of the ſhyps ſumtyme raſed on the ſandes.1555, Peter Martyr of Angleria [i.e., Peter Martyr d’Anghiera], “The Thyrde Booke of the Fyrst Decade, to Lodouike Cardinall of Aragonye and Neuie to the Kynge”, in Rycharde Eden [i.e., Richard...
    • Rádere, […] to raze or go along the ſhore as a ſhip doth, or to flye leuell to the ground as ſome birds do.1598, John Florio, “Rádere”, in A Worlde of Words, or Most Copious, and Exact Dictionarie in Italian and English, […], London: […] Arnold Hatfield for Edw[ard] Blount, →OCLC, page 308, column 1
  2. (intransitive, obsolete) To penetrate through something; to pierce.
    • [O]ne Robert Dutch of Ipſvvith, having been ſorely vvounded by a Bullet that raſed to his skull, and then mauled by the Indian Hatchets, left for dead by the Salvages,^([sic – meaning Savages]) and ſtript by them of all but his skin; […]1677, W[illiam] Hubbard, The Present State of New-England. Being a Narrative of the Troubles with the Indians in New England, […], London: […] Tho[mas] Parkhurst […], →OCLC, page 39
  3. (intransitive, obsolete, rare) Of a horse: to wear down its corner teeth as it ages, losing the black marks in their crevices.

Noun (1)

raze (plural razes)

  1. (obsolete) A slight wound; a scratch; also, a cut, a slit.
    • And verely the Emperour Nero vvas ſo greatly enamoured vpon one image of Alexander [the Great], that hee commaunded it to be guilded all over: but aftervvards, ſeeing that the more coſt vvas beſtovved upon it by laying on gold, the leſſe vvas the art ſeene of the firſt vvorkman [Lysippos], ſo that...1601, C[aius] Plinius Secundus [i.e., Pliny the Elder], “[Book XXXIV.] Of 366 Excellent Peeces of Worke in Brasse, and as Many Cunning Artificers in that Kind.”, in Philemon Holland, transl., The...
    • [I]f you make tvvo razes on each ſide [of the horse's hoof], it ſhall bee ſo much the better, and inlarge the hoofe the more; […]1610, Gervase Markham, “Of the Hoofe-bound”, in Markhams Maister-peece. Or, What doth a Horse-man Lacke. Containing All Possible Knowledge whatsoeuer which doth Belong to any Smith, Farrier, or...

Noun (2)

raze (plural razes)

  1. A swinging fence in a watercourse to prevent cattle passing through.

Also used as

raze is also the obsolete spelling of race.

Examples of raze in a sentence

  • The fortifications vvere razed to the ground; and not a veſtige vvas left, that the city of Maogamalcha had ever existed.1781, Edward Gibbon, “Residence of Julian at Antioch—His Successful Expedition against the Persians— […]”, in The History of the Decline...
  • [I]t seemed his desire to raze every trace of sorrow from the memory of his child; and to conceal the ravages of death under the appearance at least of wild and unceasing gaiety.1816, [Caroline Lamb], chapter VIII, in Glenarvon. […], volume I, London: […] [Schulze and Dean] for Henry Colburn, →OCLC, page 69:
  • [D]rowſie drouping Age, / incroaching on apace, / With penſiue Plough will raze your hue / and Beauties beames deface.1567, George Turbervil[l]e, “The Louer Exhorteth His Ladie to Take Time, while Time is”, in Epitaphes, Epigrams, Songs and Sonets, with a...
  • Thy goods are confiscate unto the state, / Thy name is razed from out her records, […]1821, Lord Byron, Marino Faliero, Doge of Venice. An Historical Tragedy, in Five Acts. […], London: John Murray, […], →OCLC, Act V, scene...

Synonyms of raze

30 more synonymsFewer synonyms

All synonyms of raze

Forms of raze

Verb
third-person singular presentrazes
present participlerazing
past participlerazed
pastrazed
alternative formrace
alternative formrase
second-person singular present (archaic)razest
second-person singular past (archaic)razedst
third-person singular present (archaic)razeth
Noun
pluralrazes

Past tense of raze: razed

Origin of raze

The verb is derived from Middle English rasen, racen, rase (“to scrape; to shave; to erase; to pull; to strip off; to pluck or tear out; to root out (a tree, etc.); to pull away, snatch; to pull down; to knock down; to rend, tear apart; to pick clean, strip; to cleave, slice; to sever; to lacerate; to pierce; to carve, engrave; to dig; (figurative) to expunge, obliterate; to alter”), from Anglo-Norman raser, rasere, rasser, Middle French raser, and Old French raser (“to shave; to touch lightly, graze; to level off (grain, etc.) in a measure; to demolish, tear down; to erase; to polish; to wear down”), from Vulgar Latin *raso (“to shave; to scrape; to scratch; to touch lightly, graze”), from Latin rāsus (“scraped; shaved”), the perfect passive participle of rādō (“to scrape, scratch; to shave; to rub, smooth; to brush along, graze”). Doublet of rash (etymology 2 and etymology 7). The noun is derived from the verb.

Words formed from raze

Words that rhyme with raze

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about raze

What does raze mean?
Raze means to level or tear down (a building, a town, etc.) to the ground; to demolish.
How do you use raze in a sentence?
The fortifications vvere razed to the ground; and not a veſtige vvas left, that the city of Maogamalcha had ever existed.
What part of speech is raze?
Raze can be a verb or a noun.
How do you pronounce raze?
Raze is pronounced /ɹeɪz/ (UK).
What is the past tense of raze?
The past tense of raze is razed.

Words near raze in the dictionary

  1. Razavi
  2. Razavi Khorasan
  3. Razavis
  4. razbazarivanie
  5. Razdelnoye
  6. raze
  7. razed
  8. razedst
  9. razee
  10. razeed
  11. razeeing

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: raze (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-raise.ogg, en-au-raze.ogg.

Cite this entry: “raze.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/raze. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.