as in using
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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Recent Examples of cannibalizing
The Post’s second bet is on the viability of text at a moment when fewer people are reading articles online, and as tech platforms are cannibalizing search traffic and directing users away from news.
—
Max Tani, semafor.com, 2 Feb. 2026
Landlords are lowering rents, raising concessions, and competing fiercely for tenants, even if that means cannibalizing older and less competitive developments.
—Aldo Svaldi, Denver Post, 22 Jan. 2026
At the same time, its recent performance has allayed fears that broadening its AI offerings meant cannibalizing revenue from its core search business.
—Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, 17 Dec. 2025
Devoting more funding to denial capabilities risks cannibalizing resources for military platforms more capable of threatening punishment, such as stealthy bombers and submarines armed with cruise missiles.
—Zack Cooper, Foreign Affairs, 6 Nov. 2025
Ducatillion described the agreement with Pimkie and the promotion of Lhomme as a smokescreen to make the company appear supportive of the textiles and fashion industry, while simultaneously cannibalizing it.
—Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 16 Sep. 2025
In other words, there's plenty that Apple could upgrade here without cannibalizing sales of the mainstream Series 11 watch.
—Andrew Cunningham, ArsTechnica, 5 Sep. 2025
Roller Hockey International, for example, launched in 1993 and folded five years later after expanding too rapidly, cannibalizing its national sponsorships and losing its ESPN TV deal.
—Justin Birnbaum, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Doing it that way gives Netflix the opportunity to eventize the film on a premium format for those who want it, all without cannibalizing the audience that would watch it at home.
—Brian Welk, IndieWire, 25 Aug. 2025
Max Tani, semafor.com, 2 Feb. 2026
Landlords are lowering rents, raising concessions, and competing fiercely for tenants, even if that means cannibalizing older and less competitive developments.
—Aldo Svaldi, Denver Post, 22 Jan. 2026
At the same time, its recent performance has allayed fears that broadening its AI offerings meant cannibalizing revenue from its core search business.
—Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, 17 Dec. 2025
Devoting more funding to denial capabilities risks cannibalizing resources for military platforms more capable of threatening punishment, such as stealthy bombers and submarines armed with cruise missiles.
—Zack Cooper, Foreign Affairs, 6 Nov. 2025
Ducatillion described the agreement with Pimkie and the promotion of Lhomme as a smokescreen to make the company appear supportive of the textiles and fashion industry, while simultaneously cannibalizing it.
—Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 16 Sep. 2025
In other words, there's plenty that Apple could upgrade here without cannibalizing sales of the mainstream Series 11 watch.
—Andrew Cunningham, ArsTechnica, 5 Sep. 2025
Roller Hockey International, for example, launched in 1993 and folded five years later after expanding too rapidly, cannibalizing its national sponsorships and losing its ESPN TV deal.
—Justin Birnbaum, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Doing it that way gives Netflix the opportunity to eventize the film on a premium format for those who want it, all without cannibalizing the audience that would watch it at home.
—Brian Welk, IndieWire, 25 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cannibalizing
Verb
-
The reversal follows a string of high-profile shootings involving federal immigration agents in which eyewitness statements and video evidence have called into question claims made to justify using deadly force.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
14 Feb. 2026
-
The probe was delayed from 2022, and headed for the asteroid Psyche, using a Mars-gravity assist and not arriving until August 2029.—
Richard Tribou,
The Orlando Sentinel,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Now, instead of dividing, cells focus on self-repair, gobbling up aged and nonfunctioning components and recycling them in a process called autophagy.—
The New York Times News Service Syndicate,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
10 Feb. 2026
-
The latest in a series of grand plans, led by 8th Regiment Partners (a joint venture of Maddd Equities and Joy Construction) and the Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition, envisions recycling the drill hall as an indoor town square and entertainment space.—
Justin Davidson,
Curbed,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cannibalizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cannibalizing. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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