We can pluck the word metastasize apart into its two Greek bits, meta- and -stasize.

You probably recognize meta- from words like metaphor and metamorphosis. It often means "change," or "higher, beyond." In metastasize, it means "change." 

The other Greek bit, -stasize, comes from histanai, meaning "to place, to stand, or to fix." That one also appears in words like static, system, ecstasy (literally "placed out [of your mind]"), and Anastasia (which, delightfully, references the act of resurrecting the dead, as it literally means "standing [dead bodies] up or again").

Put the two bits back together—meta-, "change," and -stasize, "to place"—and we see that to metastasize is to put a change in place. Which sounds pretty neutral, but is actually quite nasty: when a tumor metastasizes, it spreads to other parts of the body.

Synonyms of metastasize include spread, invade, infiltrate, p_rc__ate (to gradually spread all throughout somewhere, like hot water through coffee beans), and p_rm__te (to pass through something, soak into it, or spread all the way through it). Can you recall those last two words?

(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)  

"Metastasis" and "metastasize" have Greek bits that literally mean "to put a change in place." 

In the oldest sense, metastasis is a rhetorical change: a speaker's quick movement from one point to another, or a quick verbal attack that turns an opponent's own point against him.

But since as far back as 1663, we've used "metastasis" most often to mean "the spread or movement of some pain or disease from one part of the body to another."

And the verb, "metastasize," has been around since 1907 or so. In a literal sense, when a tumor metastasizes, it spreads to a different part of the body. And in an abstract sense, when something terrible or destructive spreads to a new place or situation, you can say it's metastasizing.

grammatical bits:

Part of speech:

Verb, the intransitive kind: you say that something metastasizes, or say that something metastasizes to or into somewhere else. For example:
     "The cancer metastasized into her lungs."
     "Their rivalry soon metastasized into a full-blown hatred."
     "Class divisions metastasize (New York Times)."

Other forms: 

The other verb forms are "metastasized" and "metastasizing."

The noun is "metastasis," as in "His symptoms suggested metastasis" and "In 1995... Ailes’s idea to create Fox News began its metastasis (The New Yorker)."

And the plural noun is "metastases," as in "He had metastases of the bone."

how to use it:

When you want to compare some terrible and dangerous problem to a spreading cancer, then instead of saying it spreads, say that it metastasizes. This gives your comment a tone that's stark, serious, and dramatic.

We could talk about all kinds of problems or other undesirable things that have metastasized, like wildfires, snowstorms, political ideas, drug trafficking, academic cheating, and trashy romance novels.

examples:

"On other screens are close-ups of skin pores, before and after, details of regimes for everything, your hands, your neck, your thighs. Your elbows, especially your elbows: aging begins at the elbows and metastasizes." 
— Margaret Atwood, Cat's Eye, 1988

"Covid-era urban decline [seemed to be] characterized by homelessness and out-in-the-open crime and drug use that not only recalled the legendarily wild and violent cities of the 1970s and 1980s but also threatened to metastasize well beyond those memories."
— David Wallace-Wells, New York Times, 4 February 2024

has this page helped you understand "metastasize"?

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Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this word, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "metastasize" without saying "spread" or "take over."

try it out:

In the New York Times, Melena Ryzik described Miami's art scene as a "metastasizing business." People show and sell art there in a "frenzy," she said.

Talk about what it means for a business to be "metastasizing" instead of just "spreading." Is there some other trend, product, business, or industry that you'd say is metastasizing?

If you like, use this space to write. (To save your work, copy and paste it into an email or a document.)

before you review, play:

Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.

Our game for May is "Color Your Own Colloquialism."

I'll give you the outline of a colloquialism, from English or translated from another language, along with its definition, and you create your own version of it. Your version can be goofy, straightforward, or unrepeatable in polite company: just have fun with it! To see the real version of the colloquialism, scroll all the way down. 

Try this one today: 

Meaning: "To have extremely good luck."

Outline: "To fall with your (body part) in the (delicious or valuable substance of some kind)."

review this word:

1. A close opposite of METASTASIZING is

A. BENIGN: not spreading, not harmful.
B. AMBIGUOUS: not clear, not definite.
C. POIGNANT: sharp to the taste, or sharp to the emotions.

2. Melissa Weller, a restaurateur, noted that "the New York bagel had metastasized _____ an overrisen, underbaked balloon of flabby dough with a bellybutton where its hole should be."

A. for
B. over
C. into

Answers to the review questions: 1. A 2. C From the game, here's the real version of the colloquialism: "To fall with your nose in the butter."

a final word:

I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From my blog: On vocabulary...       36 ways to study words.       Why we forget words, & how to remember them.       How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. On writing...       How to improve any sentence.       How to motivate our kids to write.       How to stop procrastinating and start writing.       How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count. From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.