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Synonyms

allegorize

American  
[al-i-guh-rahyz] / ˈæl ɪ gəˌraɪz /
especially British, allegorise

verb (used with object)

allegorized, allegorizing
  1. to make into an allegory; narrate allegorically.

  2. to understand in an allegorical sense; interpret allegorically.


verb (used without object)

allegorized, allegorizing
  1. to use allegory.

allegorize British  
/ ˈælɪɡəˌraɪz /

verb

  1. to transform (a story, narrative, fable, etc) into or compose in the form of allegory

  2. (tr) to interpret allegorically

"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

  • allegorization noun
  • allegorizer noun
  • overallegorize verb (used with object)
  • unallegorized adjective

Etymology

Origin of allegorize

1425–75; late Middle English < Late Latin allēgorīzāre; allegory, -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.

Shostakovich flagrantly abuses these genres to allegorize how most of the men in his opera treat most of the women.

From New York Times • Oct. 6, 2022

In 2021, though, it’s rare that a genre pic doesn’t attempt to allegorize contemporary social problems.

From Slate • Aug. 26, 2021

There are plenty of obvious ways a 21st-century novelist could allegorize a story like Brinkley’s.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 23, 2013

Partly this was because Tillstrom was able to allegorize some grown-up themes.

From New York Times • May 6, 2011

Nothing was farther from the popular caricaturists of that age than to allegorize a doctrine or a moral lesson; on the contrary, it was their habit to interpret allegory in the most absurdly literal manner.

From Caricature and Other Comic Art in all Times and many Lands. by Parton, James