decriminalize

American  

[dee-krim-uh-nl-ahyz] / diˈkrɪm ə nlˌaɪz /

especially British, decriminalise

verb (used with object)

decriminalized, decriminalizing

1. to eliminate criminal penalties for or remove legal restrictions against.

   to decriminalize marijuana.

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decriminalize British  

/ diːˈkrɪmənəˌlaɪz /

verb

1. (tr) to remove (an action) from the legal category of criminal offence

   to decriminalize the possession of marijuana

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Other Word Forms

• decriminalization noun

Etymology

Origin of decriminalize

An Americanism dating back to 1965–70; de- + criminal + -ize

Example Sentences

A decade later, the Edict of Milan decriminalized Christianity in the empire.

From The Wall Street Journal

The ban was met with an outcry and a lawsuit from vendors who argued street vending had been decriminalized and the city could no longer outlaw the stands.

From Los Angeles Times

Elsewhere in Latin America, courts in Colombia and Ecuador have decriminalized euthanasia without passing laws to legalize the practice, while Cuba allows for terminal patients to refuse being kept alive artificially.

From Barron's

Four years after California decriminalized sidewalk vending, the passage of SB 972 was a watershed moment for the mobile food economy.

From Los Angeles Times

Homosexual acts between adult men were decriminalized in New South Wales in 1984, making it the fifth state to do so.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• legitimize