cannibalized

past tense of cannibalize
as in used
to remove parts from a machine, car, etc., to repair or build another one He cannibalized one washing machine to fix another. Many parts of the engine were cannibalized from older cars.

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of cannibalized The smaller convenience-centric store cannibalized online sales by a similar amount but generated no significant increase in total net revenue. Ayşe Çetinel, Harvard Business Review, 18 Aug. 2026 These factors resulted in persistent, high operating costs that cannibalized the budget for modernization. Roshan Kumar Shetty, Forbes.com, 17 July 2026 That Montreal had so much firepower at the top of the lineup, led by 2025 MVP Marie-Philip Poulin, Laura Stacey and Abby Roque, likely cannibalized some of Desbiens’ MVP case. Hailey Salvian, New York Times, 16 June 2026 Analysts caution, however, that many of these vehicles are believed to be in storage, maintained at low readiness or cannibalized for parts. Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 28 May 2026 Astronomers watched as jets blasting from a black hole cannibalized a blue supergiant companion star. Robert Lea, Space.com, 21 Apr. 2026 No small wonder that Scorcese self-cannibalized the move in several subsequent projects. Literary Hub, 15 Apr. 2026 SaaS profit margins may compress and consolidation may follow, but not because AI cannibalized the industry, Kahn explains. Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 6 Apr. 2026 Yeah, streamers have really cannibalized the romcom genre. Zac Ntim, Deadline, 1 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cannibalized
Verb
  • According to the Financial Times, the Wall Street bank boss used the conversation to lobby the British government against creating a more hostile tax environment for banks.
    Leonie Kidd, CNBC, 17 Aug. 2026
  • But Roman says that in cross-examination, the defense used the same searches to highlight their argument that Clancy was overmedicated, failed by the medical system, and experiencing postpartum psychosis at the time.
    Aaron Parseghian, CBS News, 17 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • The leak-proof, puncture-resistant container should then be thrown in the trash, not recycled or flushed down a toilet.
    Amethyst Martinez, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2026
  • These materials could previously not be recycled due to potential contamination.
    Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 20 Aug. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Cannibalized.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cannibalized. Accessed 24 Aug. 2026.

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