Definition of: displace

(dis·plās′) v.t. ·placed, ·plac·ing
1. To remove or shift from the proper place.
2. To take the place of; supplant.
3. To remove from a position or office; discharge.
4. Chem. To release from combination: Zinc displaces the hydrogen of an acid.
5. Obs. To banish. [<OF desplacer <des- away (<L dis-) + placer place] Synonyms: confuse, derange, disarrange, disturb, jumble, mislay, misplace, remove, unsettle. Objects are displaced when moved out of the place they have occupied; they are misplaced when they are put into a place where they should not be. One may know where to find what he has misplaced; what he has mislaid he cannot locate. Antonyms: adjust, array, assort, classify, dispose, group, order, place, sort.