colonize

[ kol-uh-nahyz ]

/ ˈkɒl əˌnaɪz /

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See synonyms for: colonize / colonized / colonizing / colonization on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), col·o·nized, col·o·niz·ing.

to establish a colony in; settle: England colonized Australia.

to form a colony of: to colonize laborers in a mining region.

verb (used without object), col·o·nized, col·o·niz·ing.

to form a colony: They went out to Australia to colonize.

to settle in a colony.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Also especially British, col·o·nise .

Origin of colonize

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

OTHER WORDS FROM colonize

col·o·niz·a·ble, adjectivecol·o·niz·a·bil·i·ty, nouncol·o·ni·za·tion, nouncol·o·ni·za·tion·ist, noun

col·o·niz·er, nounin·ter·col·o·ni·za·tion, nounin·ter·col·o·nize, verb, in·ter·col·o·nized, in·ter·col·o·niz·ing.re·col·o·ni·za·tion, nounre·col·o·nize, verb (used with object), re·col·o·nized, re·col·o·niz·ing.un·col·o·nize, verb (used with object), un·col·o·nized, un·col·o·niz·ing.well-col·o·nized, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use colonize in a sentence

Colonial rhetoric was often virtuous: colonizers would bring civilization to benighted Africans.
Why Africa’s Turning Anti-Gay|Jay Michaelson|March 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Now, many Han Chinese view Tibetans as dangerous ingrates who have bitten the hand of their benevolent Chinese colonizers.
Obama Stands Up to China|Isabel Hilton|February 16, 2010|DAILY BEAST
The Spanish were not only the first conquerors of the New World, and its first colonizers, but also its first civilizers.
The Spanish Pioneers|Charles F. Lummis
Min and I got to thinking of all those robot colonizers who'd be coming out here.
The Love of Frank Nineteen|David Carpenter Knight

Dutch merchants, Dutch fishermen, and Dutch colonizers made themselves felt as a force throughout the world.
The Book of Art for Young People|Agnes Conway
The other five were all D-class colonizers, built during the Expansion when large populations were moved.
The Misplaced Battleship|Harry Harrison (AKA Henry Maxwell Dempsey)
Spanish historians add their testimony, and claim the Phoenicians as their principal colonizers.
An Illustrated History of Ireland from AD 400 to 1800|Mary Frances Cusack

British Dictionary definitions for colonize

colonize

colonise

/ (ˈkɒləˌnaɪz) /

verb

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

to settle in (an area) as colonists

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

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

Derived forms of colonize

colonizable or colonisable, adjectivecolonization or colonisation, nouncolonizer or coloniser, noun

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

colonize

Origin of colonize

OTHER WORDS FROM colonize

Words related to colonize

How to use colonize in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for colonize

colonise

Derived forms of colonize