vanish

verb

van·​ish ˈva-nish 

vanished; vanishing; vanishes

intransitive verb

1

a

: to pass quickly from sight : disappear

b

: to pass completely from existence

2

: to assume the value zero

transitive verb

: to cause to disappear

vanisher noun

Synonyms

• dematerialize
• disappear
• dissolve
• evanesce
• evaporate
• fade
• flee
• fly
• melt
• sink

Examples of vanish in a Sentence

The missing girl vanished without a trace a year ago.

The papers seem to have vanished into thin air.

Dinosaurs vanished from the face of the earth millions of years ago.

Recent Examples on the Web

Nonetheless, his name could soon vanish among the younger generations. —Giovanni Bogani, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Oct. 2024

The girls vanished while walking along the Monon High Bridge Trail Feb. 13, 2017. —Louis Casiano, Fox News, 19 Oct. 2024

And then in a flash the book vanished, never to be seen again. —Lauren Groff, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2024

But Musk’s political restraint has vanished over the last two years as the magnate pivoted to using his vast wealth, celebrity and outsize online presence to become one of former President Trump’s most visible and deep-pocketed champions. —Laura J. Nelson, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English vanisshen, borrowed from Anglo-French vaniss- stem of vanir, envanir, esvanir, going back to Vulgar Latin *exvānīre, restructuring of Latin ēvānēscere "to fade away, disappear," from ē- e- entry 1 + vānēscere "to pass from existence," inchoative verb derivative of vānus "empty, lacking content" — more at wane entry 1

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Phrases Containing vanish

• disappear/vanish into thin air

Kids Definition

vanish

verb

van·​ish ˈvan-ish 

: to pass from sight or existence

vanisher noun