crystallize
Americanverb (used with object)
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to form into crystals; cause to assume crystalline form.
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to give definite or concrete form to.
to crystallize an idea.
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to coat with sugar.
verb (used without object)
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to form crystals; become crystalline in form.
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to assume definite or concrete form.
verb
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to form or cause to form crystals; assume or cause to assume a crystalline form or structure
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to coat or become coated with sugar
crystallized fruit
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to give a definite form or expression to (an idea, argument, etc) or (of an idea, argument, etc) to assume a recognizable or definite form
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of crystallize
Vocabulary lists containing crystallize
Academic Vocabulary, Unit 3
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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.
Even the Piker issue—the one that seems to crystallize so much of the anxiety there—he treated as over-indexed.
From Slate • Apr. 29, 2026
“It would be very surprising to markets if the Fed tried to crystallize gains. Most experts would tell you it’s highly unlikely. I would tell you it is highly unlikely,” Cabana said.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 18, 2026
Rio Tinto was unwilling to stretch too far on a premium for long-dated copper options “at cycle-peak prices, while Glencore refused to crystallize its copper growth pipeline upfront,” says Peker.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 6, 2026
Bond markets are said to be a daily referendum on the government, as their moves crystallize the impact of fiscal, monetary, domestic, and foreign policies into a series of tradable data points.
From Barron's • Jan. 21, 2026
Afterward they could be discarded, but the potion must be thickened with ash and allowed to crystallize.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
