customize
Americanverb (used with object)
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customizes,
present (3rd person singular)
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customized,
past participle, past
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customizing
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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customizationnoun
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customizernoun
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customizableadjective
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noncustomizedadjective
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semicustomizedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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customizesimple
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customizessimple
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have customizedperfect
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has customizedperfect
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am customizingprogressive
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are customizingprogressive
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is customizingprogressive
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have been customizingperfect progressive
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has been customizingperfect progressive
Past
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customizedsimple
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had customizedperfect
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was customizingprogressive
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were customizingprogressive
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had been customizingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of customize
Explanation
To customize something is to make it exactly how you want it. If you put stickers all over your plain old notebook, you customize it. If you see the word customer in customize, you’re onto something — to customize is to make something to a customer’s specifications. When clothes are customized — or tailored — they’re made with you in mind, specifically. A customized suit should fit perfectly. If you customize your car, it could be bright pink with eyelashes on the headlights. Or not.
Vocabulary lists containing customize
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.
See Examples For:
What distinguishes MeRT is its use of an AI-assisted algorithm to customize stimulation protocols based on each patient's brain activity rather than relying on a standardized approach.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 23, 2026
I like to arrange an almost ridiculous assortment of crunchy, creamy, salty, fresh and acidic things, allowing everyone to customize their bowls.
From Salon ● Oct. 20, 2026
These little things also have cute avatars, which you can customize to your liking.
From Slate ● Oct. 14, 2026
Altman said that users can customize instructions and implement custom rules that prohibit what Dots are capable of.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026
“The default setting is typically ‘help,’ but you can customize as the situation allows.”
From "The Last Last-Day-of-Summer" by Lamar Giles
While Apple customizes many components inside iPhones, Khan said, “there isn’t a lot of customization” for memory, alluding to the possibility that commodity Chinese memory chips could be used.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
Whenever she’s on the hunt for a new pair, her first stop is the Rose Bowl Flea Market where she finds Allyn Scura, a local vendor, who customizes vintage frames.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2025
This new testing method further advances precision medicine, which is a patient care approach that customizes treatments specifically for a person's genetics, environment and lifestyle.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 18, 2024
The photo was taken on Dec. 8, 2003, as Maxwell and Bamford, whose business customizes luxury watches, attended the opening of the Asprey Flagship Store on Fifth Avenue in New York.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 17, 2020
The plant sometimes customizes guns with scratches and blemishes by painting American flags on them, she said.
From Washington Post
Additional funding from Biohub then made it possible to acquire a customized, state-of-the-art Thermo Fisher Krios cryo-EM microscope and modify it to accommodate the laser technology.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 22, 2026
The vaccine, called intismeran, is a radical new approach to treating melanoma that uses genetic data from the patient’s tumor to create a customized vaccine.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 21, 2026
Some people are getting prescriptions for peptides that come from compounded pharmacies, which make customized versions of medications that aren’t FDA approved.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
The market for Palantir could also expand as the focus shifts toward customized software applications.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026
Ren’s room looks completely different from mine, like he had it customized to his satisfaction.
From "Warcross" by Marie Lu
It started with Aflalo customizing vintage clothing in the back of a store and selling it before transitioning to producing its own clothing using sustainable materials.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
"It avoids the complex process of customizing cells and uses readily available drugs to reversibly enhance NK cells' anti-tumor activities."
From Science Daily ● May 25, 2026
Vargo purchased her home in April 2025 for about $450,000, spending closer to $465,000 all in after customizing finishes like lighting, fixtures and hardware.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 24, 2026
The key is to have fun with building and customizing your maximalist egg.
From Salon ● Mar. 21, 2026
Lena had been creating paint-by-numbers canvases for him, sketching them with expert speed, customizing each image to his specifications.
From "Fablehaven" by Brandon Mull
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
