verb
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To convert data or signals, such as images, text, or sound, to digital form.
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See more at A/D converter
Other Word Forms
- digitization noun
- digitizer noun
Etymology
Origin of digitize
Explanation
When you digitize something, you adapt it into a form that can be read by a computer. Publishers digitize books so they can be read on e-readers, tablets, and smartphones. You can digitize your parents' old photographs by scanning them and then uploading them. And since record companies started to digitize music, that's increasingly how people listen to it — while you may enjoy playing records on an old turntable, you probably listen to new music using an app on your phone or computer. Since 1953, this verb has been used to mean "convert into a sequence of digits," specifically digits a computer can read.
Vocabulary lists containing digitize
Computer Science and Technology - Introductory
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Computer Science and Technology - Middle School
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Computer Science and Technology - High School
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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.
And a World War I museum in Missouri had a raft of historic documents it needed to digitize.
From Salon • Feb. 7, 2026
Home Depot is also using AI in its business to help digitize the customer experience and improve its inventory stocking, and for other purposes.
From Barron's • Jan. 16, 2026
As the Archives continues to digitize its 13.5 billion pages of records, the new approach is a template for the next era of museum exhibits.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 5, 2026
The Social Security Administration has also been working to digitize its services and reduce financial errors.
From MarketWatch • Dec. 31, 2025
Their film collection was gone, save a few pieces that Molly had managed to digitize.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
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.
