What does "raze" mean?
A slight wound; a scratch; also, a cut, a slit.
Raze
/ɹeɪz/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A slight wound; a scratch; also, a cut, a slit.
- Grammar: raze is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: level, ablate, abrade, abrase.
- Useful contrasts: earth bank, build, construct.
- Usage evidence: He told his men not to raze the city.
How to use "raze"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "raze" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "raze" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "raze" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "raze" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "raze" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "level" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
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Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "raze", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A slight wound; a scratch; also, a cut, a slit. obsolete
"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 it loſt all the beautie and grace that it had by that means, he cauſed the gold to be taken off againe: and verely, the ſaid image thus unguilded as it vvas, ſeemed farre more precious than it vvas vvhiles it ſtood ſo enriched vvith gold, notvvithſtanding all the hackes, cuts, gaſhes, and raſes all over the bodie vvherein the gold did ſticke, remained ſtill, vvhich in ſome ſort might disfigure it."
- 2 Obsolete spelling of race (“rhizome of ginger”). alt-of, obsolete
- 3 A swinging fence in a watercourse to prevent cattle passing through.
Verb
- 1 To level or tear down (a building, a town, etc.) to the ground; to demolish. transitive
"The fortreſſe was raſed and beaten downe to the erthe⸝ whiche had coſt moche the makynge therof: […]"
- 2 tear down so as to make flat with the ground wordnet
- 3 To completely remove (someone or something), especially from a place, a situation, etc.; also, to remove from existence; to destroy, to obliterate. figuratively, transitive
"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."
- 4 To erase (a record, text, etc.), originally by scraping; to rub out, to scratch out. also, figuratively, transitive
"Suppleyng to Fame, I besought her grace, / And that it wolde please her, full tenderly I prayd, / Owt of her bokis Apollo to rase."
- 5 To wound (someone or part of their body) superficially; to graze. regional, transitive
"[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: […]"
Show 11 more definitions
- 6 To alter (a document) by erasing parts of it. obsolete, transitive
"This indenture is raced all the worlde may ſe it: Ceſte indenture eſt faulcée tout le monde le peult veoyr."
- 7 To carve (a line, mark, etc.) into something; to incise, to inscribe; also, to carve lines, marks, etc., into (something); to engrave. obsolete, transitive
"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."
- 8 To remove (something) by scraping; also, to cut or shave (something) off. obsolete, transitive
- 9 To rub lightly along the surface of (something); brush against, to graze. obsolete, transitive
"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) […]"
- 10 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. obsolete, transitive
"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; […]"
- 11 To shave (someone or part of their body) with a razor, etc. obsolete, transitive
"[A] ſharpe worde moued thée, when other whiles a ſworde will not, then a friendly checke killeth thée, when a raſor cannot raſe thée."
- 12 To cut, scratch, or tear (someone or something) with a sharp object; to lacerate, to slash. also, figuratively, obsolete, transitive
"Buckles and agglettes at vnwares, ſhall race his bowe, a thinge both euill for the fight, ⁊ perillous for freatinge."
- 13 To carve lines, marks, etc., into something. intransitive, obsolete
- 14 To graze or rub lightly along a surface. intransitive, obsolete
"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."
- 15 To penetrate through something; to pierce. intransitive, obsolete
"[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; […]"
- 16 Of a horse: to wear down its corner teeth as it ages, losing the black marks in their crevices. intransitive, obsolete, rare
Example
"He told his men not to raze the city."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "raze"?
Common synonyms include: level, ablate, abrade, abrase, align, annihilate.
How do you use "raze" in a sentence?
He told his men not to raze the city.
How do you pronounce "raze"?
Pronounced /ɹeɪz/.
Etymology
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.