Romanize

[ roh-muh-nahyz ]

verb (used with object)

, Ro·man·ized, Ro·man·iz·ing.

1. to make Roman Catholic.
2. (often lowercase) to make Roman in character.
3. (often lowercase) to render in the Latin alphabet, especially a language traditionally written in a different system, as Chinese or Japanese.

verb (used without object)

, Ro·man·ized, Ro·man·iz·ing.

1. to conform to Roman Catholic doctrine and practices; to become Roman Catholic.
2. (often lowercase) to follow Roman practices.

Romanize

/ ˈrəʊməˌnaɪz /

verb

1. tr to impart a Roman Catholic character to (a ceremony, practice, etc)
2. intr to be converted to Roman Catholicism
3. tr to transcribe or transliterate (a language) into the Roman alphabet
4. to make Roman in character, allegiance, style, etc

Derived Forms

• ˌRomaniˈzation, noun

Other Words From

• Roman·i·zation noun
• Roman·izer noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of Romanize¹

First recorded in 1600–10; Roman + -ize

Example Sentences

The church and the nation, however, were strongly Protestant and were soon alarmed by his efforts to Romanize the country.

From Project Gutenberg

The Romans gave us Christianity and the rudiments of civilization, but their attempts to Romanize us met with little success.

From Project Gutenberg

The attempt in the nineteenth century to Romanize our theories of liability involved a Romanized will-theory of contract.

From Project Gutenberg