be vacated

USAGE SUMMARY

"be vacated" is correct and usable in written English. You can use it in legal or formal contexts, often referring to a decision or order being annulled or set aside. Example: "The court's previous ruling will be vacated." Alternative expressions include "be annulled" and "be overturned."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Academia

Science

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

56 human-written examples

Now, the property must be vacated.

The New York Times

Others are rundown, soon to be vacated.

The New York Times

All will be vacated before the end of the year.

The New York Times

So whose spot is most likely to be vacated?

The Guardian

In one of the last residences to be vacated, kittens roamed amid family photos and dolls.

The New York Times

2. Dismissal of the appeal does not require that the judgments below be vacated.

Cornell University

They have asked the convictions be vacated in only three cases, including Mr. McKee's.

The New York Times

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

4 human-written examples

Graham Norton is set to step into Jonathan Ross's soon-to-be vacated Friday night BBC1 slot.

Independent

We're seeing more people coming into prisons with pre-existing health issues, particularly mental health issues," he told VICE in his soon-to-be vacated downtown Ottawa office.

Vice

But brokers say that interest is high in the soon-to-be-vacated offices.

The New York Times

Some of these are confidential; one that isn't is Reeder, one of the companies aspiring to the soon-to-be-vacated Google Reader throne.

TechCrunch

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

In a real estate or commercial context, use this phrase to describe the formal requirement for tenants or occupants to leave a property.

Common error

Do not confuse "be vacated" with "be evacuated". While both involve leaving a space, "vacate" is usually a procedural or voluntary exit (e.g. at the end of a lease), whereas "evacuate" implies a forced or emergency departure for safety reasons.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "be vacated" functions as a passive verb phrase. It combines the auxiliary verb "be" with the past participle of the verb "vacate". Ludwig AI data shows that this construction is preferred in formal documents to focus on the object (the room or the judgment) rather than the person performing the action.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

55%

Academia

30%

Science

10%

Less common in

Wiki

3%

Formal & Business

1%

Reference

1%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In conclusion, "be vacated" is a robust and formal passive construction with two distinct primary applications. As Ludwig AI examples demonstrate, it is most frequently used in legal contexts to describe the annulment of judgments or convictions and in physical contexts to denote the requirement to leave a property or office. Its usage is highly concentrated in elite news outlets and academic legal repositories, confirming its status as a professional standard. Writers should use it when precision is required regarding the status of a legal order or the formal vacancy of a space, while being careful not to confuse it with the emergency-specific "be evacuated".

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

be annulled

Focuses on the legal cancellation of a judgment or contract.

be overturned

Specific to judicial decisions being reversed by a higher court.

be invalidated

Indicates that something is rendered legally void or no longer in effect.

be set aside

A formal legal term for ignoring or cancelling a previous ruling.

be rescinded

Used when an order, policy or law is formally taken back.

be quashed

Stronger legal term for rejecting or suppressing a legal proceeding.

be emptied

Refers strictly to the physical removal of contents or people from a space.

be moved out of

Plain English description for leaving a residence or office.

be abandoned

Suggests leaving a place permanently, often without the intent to return.

be cleared out

More informal, often implying a thorough removal of items.

FAQs

How do I use "be vacated" in a sentence?

The phrase is used to indicate that a space must be emptied or a ruling must be cancelled. For example: "The office must "be vacated" by noon" or "The conviction should "be vacated" due to new evidence".

What is the legal meaning of "be vacated"?

In law, when a judgment or sentence is said to "be vacated", it means it is rendered void or cancelled, essentially as if the decision had never been made.

What can I say instead of "be vacated" for a physical space?

Depending on the context, you can use phrases like "be emptied", "be cleared" or "be surrendered".

Is it correct to say a conviction will "be vacated"?

Yes, this is a standard legal expression. According to Ludwig's database, many high-authority sources like The New York Times and Cornell Law School use this construction to describe the annulment of a criminal conviction.