sanitize

American  

[san-i-tahyz] / ˈsæn ɪˌtaɪz /

especially British, sanitise

verb (used with object)

• sanitizes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• sanitized,
  past participle,  past
• sanitizing
  present participle

1. to free from dirt, germs, etc., as by cleaning or sterilizing.

2. to make less offensive by eliminating anything unwholesome, objectionable, incriminating, etc..

   to sanitize a document before releasing it to the press.

---

sanitize British  

/ ˈsænɪˌtaɪz /

verb

1. to make sanitary or hygienic, as by sterilizing

2. to omit unpleasant details from (a news report, document, etc) to make it more palatable to the recipients

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• sanitization
  noun
• unsanitized
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• sanitizing
  present
• sanitized
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• sanitize
  simple
• sanitizes
  simple
• have sanitized
  perfect
• has sanitized
  perfect
• am sanitizing
  progressive
• are sanitizing
  progressive
• is sanitizing
  progressive
• have been sanitizing
  perfect progressive
• has been sanitizing
  perfect progressive

Past

• sanitized
  simple
• had sanitized
  perfect
• was sanitizing
  progressive
• were sanitizing
  progressive
• had been sanitizing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will sanitize
  simple
• will have sanitized
  perfect
• will be sanitizing
  progressive
• will have been sanitizing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of sanitize

First recorded in 1830–40; sanit(ary) + -ize

Explanation

To sanitize something is to make it extremely clean. After watching you play with your slobbery dog, your fastidious friend might insist that you sanitize your hands before sitting down to dinner. When you clean or sterilize something, particularly for reasons of good health (like not spreading germs), you can say that you sanitize it. You can also use this verb in a figurative way, whenever you "clean" something: "She doesn't want to risk alienating her audience, so she sanitizes her speech to remove anything that might offend them." The Latin root is sanitas, "health."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sanitize sanitizes sanitized sanitizing

The company must also sanitize the freezer within seven days of clearing out remaining food waste.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

Her concurrence also refuses to sanitize Reconstruction into an abstract legal debate.

From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026

“I think it was a deliberate choice to penalize a journalist for refusing to sanitize accurate reporting,” Alfonsi told the New York Times of her firing.

From Salon ● Jun. 1, 2026

She called the network’s decision to allow her contract to expire “a deliberate choice to penalize a journalist for refusing to sanitize factually accurate reporting” that “sends a chilling message to the entire newsroom.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026

Isn’t that what you use to sanitize our toilets?

From "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray

“Using a smartphone application sanitizes things and makes it feel like it’s safe and unbiased,” said Ari Sawyer, a border researcher for Human Rights Watch.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 9, 2024

It uses an automated bin return that sanitizes trays with germ-killing ultraviolet light between users.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 6, 2024

“True Spirit” streamlines and sanitizes her impressive real-life feat, which began in October 2009, into pure inspo fuel, recounting Watson’s maritime journey without ever turning grim for long.

From New York Times ● Feb. 2, 2023

She sanitizes her hands and turns to a staffer with a request.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 13, 2022

Episodes emphasize a brightness and zest to overpower the shades of blue written into Lancashire's character, an approach that also sanitizes the battles women like Bradford's Alice Naman had to fight.

From Salon ● Mar. 31, 2022

Workers have cleared out and sanitized the eastern freezer, which was largely destroyed in the fire and filled with spoiled food and charred debris.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

Other presidents have also sometimes behaved contrary to democratic ideals, and national memorials often present a more sanitized version of American history.

From Slate ● May 18, 2026

And now the estate’s sanctioned box office success story, “Michael,” an absurd, sanitized musical biopic, has audiences dancing in the aisles during the concert numbers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026

The county health services inspection report said that for the stand to reopen, rodent activity must be eliminated and equipment surfaces, food containers, shelves and floors must be cleaned and sanitized.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 28, 2026

The lights in the decontamination room are brighter, the air more sanitized than the rest of the ship.

From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera

Infantino has a gift for seduction—and sanitizing controversy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026

“We see them as intellectualizing or sanitizing radical-right ideas that are then taken up by the parties in power,” said Allchorn, the U.K. extremism expert.

From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026

Years ago, Douthat might have been accused of sanitizing the figures who appear on his podcast or of providing intellectual cover to the legitimately unhinged.

From Slate ● Oct. 7, 2025

Brad Sherman, Judy Chu and Jimmy Gomez said that they were left with more questions than answers — and accused the government of sanitizing the center.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2025

The puff of cold sanitizing air made Coal shiver, and his skin wavered into view, then became transparent again.

From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste

Related Words

• decontaminate
• disinfect