denationalize

[dee-nash-uh-nl-ahyz]

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verb (used with object), de·na·tion·al·ized, de·na·tion·al·iz·ing.

to remove (an industry or the like) from government ownership or control.

to deprive of national status, attachments, or characteristics.

Also especially British, de·na·tion·al·ise.

Origin of denationalize

First recorded in 1800–10; de- + nationalize

Related formsde·na·tion·al·i·za·tion, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for denationalize

decontrol, denationalize

Examples from the Web for denationalize

Historical Examples of denationalize

The Genoese had striven long and hard to denationalize the Corsican people by the introduction of foreign and hostile elements.
Wanderings in Corsica, Vol. 1 of 2
Ferdinand Gregorovius
He could not assent to the principle, that Congress had a right to denationalize the public funds.
Thirty Years' View (Vol. I of 2)
Thomas Hart Benton
His efforts to dazzle German princes and denationalize two of her leading thinkers were partly successful.
The Life of Napoleon I (Volumes, 1 and 2)
John Holland Rose
There is in every country a class who are prone to denationalize themselves; at this day, they generally ape the Frenchman.
The Actress in High Life
Sue Petigru Bowen
Alliance with the anti-slavery North would deprive a party of support South and denationalize it.
The Abolition Crusade and Its Consequences
Hilary Abner Herbert

British Dictionary definitions for denationalize

denationalize

denationalise

verb

to return or transfer (an industry, etc) from public to private ownership

to deprive (an individual, people, institution, etc) of national character or nationality

Derived Formsdenationalization or denationalisation, 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

Word Origin and History for denationalize

1807, "to deprive of nationality," from French dénationaliser (said in contemporary English publications to have been coined by Napoleon Buonaparte; denapoleonize was coined shortly thereafter); see de- + nationalize. Meaning "to transfer from national to private ownership" recorded from 1921. Related: Denationalized; denationalization.