rationalize

American  

[rash-uh-nl-ahyz, rash-nl-ahyz] / ˈræʃ ə nlˌaɪz, ˈræʃ nlˌaɪz /

especially British, rationalise

verb (used with object)

rationalizes, present (3rd person singular) rationalized, past participle, past rationalizing present participle

1. to ascribe (one's acts, opinions, etc.) to causes that superficially seem reasonable and valid but that actually are unrelated to the true, possibly unconscious and often less creditable or agreeable causes.

2. to remove unreasonable elements from.

3. to make rational or conformable to reason.

4. to treat or explain in a rational or rationalistic manner.

5. Mathematics. to eliminate radicals from (an equation or expression).

   to rationalize the denominator of a fraction.

6. Chiefly British. to reorganize and integrate (an industry).

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verb (used without object)

rationalizes, present (3rd person singular) rationalized, past participle, past rationalizing present participle

1. to invent plausible explanations for acts, opinions, etc., that are actually based on other causes.

   He tried to prove that he was not at fault, but he was obviously rationalizing.

2. to employ reason; think in a rational or rationalistic manner.

rationalize British  

/ ˈræʃənəˌlaɪz /

verb

1. to justify (one's actions, esp discreditable actions, or beliefs) with plausible reasons, esp after the event

2. psychol to indulge, often unchallenged, in excuses for or explanations of (behaviour about which one feels uncomfortable or guilty)

3. to apply logic or reason to (something)

4. to eliminate unnecessary equipment, personnel, or processes from (a group of businesses, factory, etc), in order to make it more efficient

5. (tr) maths to eliminate one or more radicals without changing the value of (an expression) or the roots of (an equation)

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Usage

Although rationalize retains its principal 19th-century senses “to make conformable to reason” and “to treat in a rational manner,” 20th-century psychology has given it the now more common meaning “to ascribe (one's acts, opinions, etc.) to causes that seem reasonable but actually are unrelated to the true, possibly unconscious causes.” Although the possibility of ambiguity exists, the context will usually make clear which sense is intended.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• rationalization
  noun
• rationalizer
  noun
• overrationalize
  verb
• nonrationalized
  adjective
• semirationalized
  adjective
• unrationalized
  adjective
• unrationalizing
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• rationalizing
  present
• rationalized
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• rationalize
  simple
• rationalizes
  simple
• have rationalized
  perfect
• has rationalized
  perfect
• am rationalizing
  progressive
• are rationalizing
  progressive
• is rationalizing
  progressive
• have been rationalizing
  perfect progressive
• has been rationalizing
  perfect progressive

Past

• rationalized
  simple
• had rationalized
  perfect
• was rationalizing
  progressive
• were rationalizing
  progressive
• had been rationalizing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will rationalize
  simple
• will have rationalized
  perfect
• will be rationalizing
  progressive
• will have been rationalizing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of rationalize

First recorded in 1810–20; rational + -ize

Explanation

Rationalize means to justify by developing a rationale, or a set of reasons for something. You could rationalize cutting school, saying your classes are boring, but you are still doing what you shouldn't be doing. Rationalize can also mean reorganizing along rational lines––a watchmaker's shop might be set up in a totally illogical way that made sense only to the old owner, whose children will rationalize the shop's organization once the old man dies.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

rationalize rationalizes rationalized rationalizing

But there are growing signs that they’re trying to rationalize the huge checks they’re writing.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026

“In all of the history of money bail there has never been an attempt to rationalize the money amounts. The money amounts of the bonds are literally picked out of the air.”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026

"Our findings allowed us to rationalize the critical role of engineering the hydrogen-bond network at the catalyst/electrolyte interface in designing high-efficiency, low-cost AEMWEs," Wu said.

From Science Daily ● May 18, 2026

“The salt association was thus a classic example of an effort by producers to rationalize the methods of production, and, more important, marketing,” Page Smith writes External link in The Rise of Industrial America.

From Barron's ● May 2, 2026

Confronted with the new fact—that his company was effectively long $50 billion in triple-B subprime mortgage bonds, masquerading as triple-A-rated diversified pools of consumer loans—Cassano at first sought to rationalize it.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

Kane, who declined to disclose his average earnings, rationalizes that big losses are just part of the job.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 9, 2026

Tan says she spends about $250 a month on live mealworms for “Amy’s Bistro,” which she rationalizes “by calculating the amount of money I have saved by not having children.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 6, 2024

In a note to employees, Mr. Iger said a new company structure was on the way that “puts more decision-making back in the hands of our creative teams and rationalizes costs.”

From New York Times ● Nov. 21, 2022

But if she came out before, Berry rationalizes, surely she could again.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 14, 2022

Or she rationalizes, “I call him when he calls me.”

From "Enrique's Journey" by Sonia Nazario

And refining capacity is being rationalized globally, not just in the U.S.

From Barron's ● Jan. 10, 2026

Impulse policies, like impulse buys, can work out well or badly but can never be well rationalized.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 24, 2025

“We rationalized that if this area were to burn, the whole town would burn,” he said.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 15, 2025

On Thursday, the State Department announced it would review the legal status of immigrants who praised, rationalized or made light of Kirk’s death.

From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2025

“But then,” he rationalized, “if I did that, all the other would expect to get ’em handed to ’em.

From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith

“We’ve probably done more rationalizing the supply chain, for example shutting down plants rather than investing in creating a new manufacturing footprint,” McNamara said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 8, 2026

The agency describes the move as "a step forward in rationalizing its use and promoting its safe and responsible use."

From Science Daily ● Feb. 26, 2026

I'm a lot better now at rationalizing facts and reminding myself of what those things are, and that helps me not get ahead of myself and have a super emotional reaction to a thing.

From Salon ● Apr. 17, 2025

As of now, the locals’ best way of rationalizing the “it can’t happen here” fallacy lies in redefining “here”: Santa Monica simply isn’t “here.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 15, 2024

The effect of reasoning on faith is constructive, while that of rationalizing is destructive.

From The Church, the Schools and Evolution by Conant, J. E. (Judson Eber)

Related Words

• justify