colonize

American  

[kol-uh-nahyz] / ˈkɒl əˌnaɪz /

especially British, colonise

verb (used with object)

colonizes, present (3rd person singular) colonized, past participle, past colonizing present participle

1. 1. (of a nation or government) to claim and forcibly take control of (a territory other than its own), usually sending some of its own people to settle there.

      England colonized Australia.

   2. to move from one’s own country and settle in (such a territory).

      Dutch farmers were among the first Europeans to colonize the river valleys of New Jersey and New York.

2. to be the first settlers in.

   Southern Pacific islanders are thought to have colonized Hawaii around a.d. 450.

3. to compel or induce (people) to settle in an area for economic or political purposes.

   The government made efforts to colonize laborers and their families in areas suitable for growing rice.

4. Biology. (of a species of plant or animal) to move or be transported to (a new habitat) and seek to become established there.

   Arthropods were the first animal species to colonize land around 450 million years ago.

5. Microbiology, Medicine/Medical. (of a microbe) to multiply on or in (another organism), especially without causing infection or disease.

   Researchers attempted to get the bacteria in a probiotic to successfully colonize the intestines of 23 volunteers.

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verb (used without object)

colonizes, present (3rd person singular) colonized, past participle, past colonizing present participle

1. to take control of or settle in territories other than one’s own.

   Many other European powers were colonizing during the modern period besides France.

   When the British colonized in Australia, the basic rights of Aboriginals were taken away.

colonize British  

/ ˈkɒləˌnaɪz /

verb

1. to send colonists to or establish a colony in (an area)

2. to settle in (an area) as colonists

3. (tr) to transform (a community) into a colony

4. (of plants and animals) to become established in (a new environment)

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• recolonize
  verb (used with object)
• intercolonization
  noun
• uncolonize
  verb (used with object)
• well-colonized
  adjective
• colonizer
  noun
• colonization
  noun
• colonizability
  noun
• intercolonize
  verb
• colonizationist
  noun
• colonizable
  adjective
• recolonization
  noun

Conjugated Forms

Present

• have colonized
  perfect
• has colonized
  perfect 3rd person singular
• am colonizing
  progressive 1st person singular
• is colonizing
  progressive 3rd person singular
• are colonizing
  progressive
• has been colonizing
  perfect progressive 3rd person singular
• have been colonizing
  perfect progressive
• colonizes
  singular 3rd person
• colonizing
  participle

Past

• had colonized
  perfect
• had been colonizing
  perfect progressive
• was colonizing
  progressive singular
• were colonizing
  progressive plural
• colonized
  simple
• colonized
  participle

Future

• will colonize
  simple
• will have colonized
  perfect
• will have been colonizing
  perfect progressive
• will be colonizing
  progressive

Etymology

Origin of colonize

First recorded in 1615–25; colon(y) + -ize

Explanation

To colonize is to settle in, and take control of, land outside your own borders. Usually, a large, powerful country colonizes a territory or area that's much less powerful. There are many examples through history of powerful countries that colonized various regions of the world in order to gain natural resources or to obtain more land for their citizens to live in. When this happens, it's rarely good news for the people who lived there already. Colonize and colony come from the Latin colonus, "tenant farmer" or "settler in new land," from the root colere, "to cultivate, till, or inhabit."

Example Sentences

Now, SpaceX is planning to price its IPO at $135 a share at a valuation of roughly $1.77 trillion, with ambitions to colonize Mars.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 5, 2026

After Anthony’s dog savaged another man’s hog—hogs being precious in New Netherland—the couple was banished in 1639 to Long Island, where the two started a new life on land the Dutch wished to colonize.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026

The study found that diets rich in casein, the primary protein found in milk and cheese, along with wheat gluten, greatly reduced how much cholera bacteria could colonize the gut.

From Science Daily • Apr. 7, 2026

These "whale fall" sites create temporary but rich ecosystems where microbes quickly colonize and flourish.

From Science Daily • Apr. 3, 2026

Historians have two primary theories to explain what allowed the Europeans to thoroughly colonize the Indigenous lands in North America.

From "An Indigenous People’s History of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

Related Words

• conquer