crystallize

American  

[kris-tl-ahyz] / ˈkrɪs tlˌaɪz /

especially British, crystallise

verb (used with object)

• crystallizes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• crystallized,
  past participle,  past
• crystallizing
  present participle

1. to form into crystals; cause to assume crystalline form.

2. to give definite or concrete form to.

   to crystallize an idea.

3. to coat with sugar.

---

verb (used without object)

• crystallizes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• crystallized,
  past participle,  past
• crystallizing
  present participle

1. to form crystals; become crystalline in form.

2. to assume definite or concrete form.

crystallize British  

/ ˈkrɪstəˌlaɪz /

verb

1. to form or cause to form crystals; assume or cause to assume a crystalline form or structure

2. to coat or become coated with sugar

   crystallized fruit

3. 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

Derived Forms

• crystallizability
  noun
• crystallization
  noun
• crystallizer
  noun
• crystallizable
  adjective
• noncrystallizable
  adjective
• noncrystallized
  adjective
• noncrystallizing
  adjective
• uncrystallizable
  adjective
• uncrystallized
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• crystallizing
  present
• crystallized
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• crystallize
  simple
• crystallizes
  simple
• have crystallized
  perfect
• has crystallized
  perfect
• am crystallizing
  progressive
• are crystallizing
  progressive
• is crystallizing
  progressive
• have been crystallizing
  perfect progressive
• has been crystallizing
  perfect progressive

Past

• crystallized
  simple
• had crystallized
  perfect
• was crystallizing
  progressive
• were crystallizing
  progressive
• had been crystallizing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will crystallize
  simple
• will have crystallized
  perfect
• will be crystallizing
  progressive
• will have been crystallizing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of crystallize

First recorded in 1590–1600; crystall- + -ize

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

crystallize crystallizes crystallized crystallizing

“Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies,” written by philosopher Nick Bostrom, an influential figure in the burgeoning effective-altruism movement, helped crystallize the fear that rogue AI could lead to existential risks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

In an earlier project, Gaston, Lambie, and Steenbergen used liquid gallium to crystallize zinc into intricate `snowflake' structures.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 9, 2026

“Maybe in 24 hours, when things crystallize with the deal.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2026

Strong demand, solid early performances and improving profitability outlooks will crystallize the sector’s hold on markets and strengthen the industry’s case to skeptics.

From Barron's ● Jun. 9, 2026

Now, however, I knew that genes could crystallize; hence they must have a regular structure that could be solved in a straightforward fashion.

From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson

As more material crystallizes, silicon dioxide becomes increasingly concentrated in the remaining melt.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 12, 2026

“This situation perfectly crystallizes the global nature of infectious diseases,” Bhadelia said.

From MarketWatch ● May 6, 2026

That expansion crystallizes the yearslong flow of credit outside the tightly regulated banking system and into riskier, more opaque businesses.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2025

Still, the figure crystallizes something we’ve all felt for a while — that boomers are giving more money to their millennial or Gen Z offspring than past generations.

From Salon ● Apr. 9, 2025

The reality crystallizes for me, though, when Dad instructs us to take off our blindfolds and Debbie and Zara are standing in front of us.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

"There's not a consensus, by any means, that's crystallized in the United States on what, if anything, to do about AI," he said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026

These concerns are crystallized in his 1956 play “The Visit,” a work that has some of the hallmarks of the absurdist comedies of the period but just as many differences.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

My devotion crystallized right there, and it never left.

From Salon ● Sep. 9, 2026

"Iron is crystallized in oxide nanoparticles making the cells superparamagnetic and reactive to magnetic fields. We found by far the strongest magnetic response in liver tissue," adds Prof. Ulf Wiedwald, from the University of Duisburg-Essen.

From Science Daily ● May 31, 2026

Images crystallize ideas—and the image of a double-helical molecule that carried the instructions to build, run, repair, and reproduce humans crystallized the optimism and wonder of the 1950s.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

Most, if not all, of Dulli’s songs have storylines that are cinematic, but this record feels like the one where he was crystallizing that on an individual track basis.

From Salon ● Aug. 25, 2026

But mainly, I credit Romanian director Cristian Mungiu, who knows a good story when he sees one, crystallizing its potency with every camera choice.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2026

It also fears crystallizing financial losses on its portfolio by selling bonds, preferring to realize losses slowly by paying more interest on reserves than it earns on bonds.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 21, 2026

There’s always been more to Garrone’s movies than unkindness, but he has a striking facility for crystallizing human baseness in images that are both specific and laden with surplus meaning.

From New York Times ● Feb. 22, 2024

At least we didn’t have to store the honey in a special hot room to keep it from crystallizing, because every room we had was a hot room.

From "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd