as in inhabiting
to supply with inhabitants
believes that someday humans will be sent to colonize Mars
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Recent Examples of colonizing
Musk has regularly expressed his ambitions in space travel, previously suggesting colonizing Mars.
—
Washington Examiner Staff, The Washington Examiner, 9 Feb. 2026
Starship launches from Starbase Musk has often spoken about his vision of colonizing other worlds in our solar system to ensure humanity's survival in the event of an extinction-level even on Earth.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 9 Feb. 2026
The world’s leading menswear brands have never been shy about colonizing new territory—and recently, the best are heading to the hills.
—Justin Fenner, Robb Report, 1 Feb. 2026
Worldwide, as Birol suggests, electricity is colonizing sectors earlier dominated by combustion.
—Scott Montgomery, Forbes.com, 30 Jan. 2026
To her, statues of Inang Maria looked just like any other colonizing gringa.
—Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
Unlike others of his ilk, Elon Musk, nominally more interested in colonizing Mars than other parts of Earth, appears to see the annexation of Greenland as a purely nationalistic venture.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 23 Jan. 2026
What’s most troubling about that is Musk’s fixation with colonizing Mars.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 16 Jan. 2026
Few analysts will be asking Musk about his long-term plans for colonizing Mars.
—Jessica Mathews, Fortune, 16 Dec. 2025
Washington Examiner Staff, The Washington Examiner, 9 Feb. 2026
Starship launches from Starbase Musk has often spoken about his vision of colonizing other worlds in our solar system to ensure humanity's survival in the event of an extinction-level even on Earth.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 9 Feb. 2026
The world’s leading menswear brands have never been shy about colonizing new territory—and recently, the best are heading to the hills.
—Justin Fenner, Robb Report, 1 Feb. 2026
Worldwide, as Birol suggests, electricity is colonizing sectors earlier dominated by combustion.
—Scott Montgomery, Forbes.com, 30 Jan. 2026
To her, statues of Inang Maria looked just like any other colonizing gringa.
—Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
Unlike others of his ilk, Elon Musk, nominally more interested in colonizing Mars than other parts of Earth, appears to see the annexation of Greenland as a purely nationalistic venture.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 23 Jan. 2026
What’s most troubling about that is Musk’s fixation with colonizing Mars.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 16 Jan. 2026
Few analysts will be asking Musk about his long-term plans for colonizing Mars.
—Jessica Mathews, Fortune, 16 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for colonizing
Verb
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Sadly, the full ring of fire will only be witnessed by the few human beings inhabiting research stations in the path of annularity, along with the millions of penguins who call the frozen continent home.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
10 Feb. 2026
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Featuring Tim McGraw, Eric Church, and Morgan Wallen, the song finds each artist inhabiting a specific member of the landowning (fictional) McArthur family.—
Joseph Hudak,
Rolling Stone,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Perhaps the thought of former pros populating college sports and taking spots away animates Congress to act, but the track record isn’t promising.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
10 Feb. 2026
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Leonardo DiCaprio came pre-attached to the project, but Kulukundis was responsible for populating the various worlds around him.—
Nate Jones,
Vulture,
6 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Colonizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/colonizing. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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