summarize

American

[suhm-uh-rahyz] / ˈsʌm əˌraɪz /

especially British, summarise

verb (used with object)

summarized, summarizing

to make a summary of; state or express in a concise form.
to constitute a summary of.

summarize British

/ ˈsʌməˌraɪz /

verb

(tr) to make or be a summary of; express concisely

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

summarist noun
summarizable adjective
summarization noun
summarizer noun
unsummarizable adjective
unsummarized adjective
well-summarized adjective

Etymology

Origin of summarize

First recorded in 1870–75; summar(y) + -ize

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Scientific statements summarize current knowledge and identify areas for further research.

From Science Daily • Feb. 27, 2026

Did anyone summarize decisions and assign next steps?

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 25, 2026

“Each time samurai would commit the ritual suicide of seppuku, they would first read the death poem they had prepared in order to summarize their life and make sense of it,” Murakami said.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 18, 2026

To summarize: Your father intended to leave money to your children via trusts.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 2, 2026

To summarize, the laws of science do not distinguish between the forward and backward directions of time.

From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023