dramatize

[ dram-uh-tahyz, drah-muh- ]

/ ˈdræm əˌtaɪz, ˈdrɑ mə- /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for dramatize on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), dram·a·tized, dram·a·tiz·ing.

to put into a form suitable for acting on a stage.

to express or represent vividly, emotionally, or strikingly: He dramatizes his woes with sobs and sighs.

verb (used without object), dram·a·tized, dram·a·tiz·ing.

to express oneself in a dramatic or exaggerated way.

QUIZ

SHALL WE PLAY A "SHALL" VS. "SHOULD" CHALLENGE?

Should you take this quiz on “shall” versus “should”? It should prove to be a quick challenge!

Question 1 of 6

Which form is used to state an obligation or duty someone has?

shall

should

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Also especially British, dram·a·tise .

Origin of dramatize

1770–80; <Greek drāmat- (see dramatic) + -ize

OTHER WORDS FROM dramatize

dram·a·tiz·a·ble, adjectivedram·a·tiz·er, nouno·ver·dram·a·tize, verb, o·ver·dram·a·tized, o·ver·dram·a·tiz·ing.un·dram·a·tiz·a·ble, adjective

un·dram·a·tized, adjectivewell-dram·a·tized, adjective

Words nearby dramatize

dramatics, dramatic unities, dramatis personae, dramatist, dramatization, dramatize, dramaturge, dramaturgy, Drambuie, dramedy, dram glass

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use dramatize in a sentence

Such a large and various cast reflects the scope of a book whose project seems nothing short of dramatizing one of the world’s most unyielding conflicts in a way that shows all sides and takes none.
Rebecca Sacks’s ‘City of a Thousand Gates’ is a kaleidoscopic debut that illuminates the Israeli-Palestinian conflict|Porter Shreve|February 4, 2021|Washington Post
The goal is to dramatize the former president’s incitement role in a way that even GOP senators cannot avoid grappling with.
Democrats plan a multimedia impeachment trial — to keep GOP senators awake|Greg Sargent|January 21, 2021|Washington Post
A plunge into this often-fatal inextricability is most fully dramatized by the novella that concludes the book.
In Danielle Evans’s ‘The Office of Historical Corrections,’ the sorrows are personal but also deeply historical|Chaya Bhuvaneswar|January 15, 2021|Washington Post
Iceberg Slim is just one of the characters that each chapter uses to dramatize its arguments.
Delusions, justice, accountability and freedom in America|Paul Taylor|December 18, 2020|Washington Post

A covid-19 chart that’s been shared thousands of times is dramatizing just how well vaccines against the disease can work and how we might get out of pandemic hell.
The chart that shows how we’ll get back to normal|Niall Firth|December 11, 2020|MIT Technology Review
The American Apparel adverts are deemed tacky and offensive because they dramatize, brazenly, the sex-drenched time we live in.
In Defense of American Apparel: Why a Hitched-Up Skirt Barely Conceals a Profound Social Confusion|Tim Teeman|August 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It's difficult to imagine anyone better equipped to dramatize these questions than the show's creators.
‘The Leftovers’ Review: A Fever Dream You Can’t Wake Up From|Andrew Romano|June 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Because it's too cautious to dramatize real problems and too reductive to tackle them realistically.
Generic and Superficial ‘Tyrant’ Amerisplains the Middle East|Andrew Romano|June 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Fosse uses poetic dialogue, with rhythmic repetitions and silences, to dramatize life and loneliness.
Nobel Literature Prize Favorites for Dummies, According to the Bookies|Jimmy So|October 9, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Drutman goes on the dramatize this elite in a number of ways and to slice and dice the data similarly.
The 1 Percent of the 1 Percent|Michael Tomasky|June 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The annual festivities and mysteries will be discussed together because both were intended to dramatize the same beliefs.
The Sex Worship and Symbolism of Primitive Races|Sanger Brown, II
It was perfectly natural that he should stage his first love-affair, and when he was jilted that he should dramatize his despair.
The Gay Cockade|Temple Bailey
Any author may reserve the right to translate or to dramatize his own work.
The Library of Work and Play: Mechanics, Indoors and Out|Fred T. Hodgson
She did not even attempt to dramatize herself as the good angel.
The Salamander|Owen Johnson
How did it happen that she did not attempt to dramatize herself with Lindaberry?
The Salamander|Owen Johnson

British Dictionary definitions for dramatize

dramatize

dramatise

/ (ˈdræməˌtaɪz) /

verb

(tr) to put into dramatic form

to express or represent (something) in a dramatic or exaggerated wayhe dramatizes his illness

Derived forms of dramatize

dramatizable or dramatisable, adjectivedramatizer or dramatiser, 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

dramatize

Origin of dramatize

OTHER WORDS FROM dramatize

Words nearby dramatize

Words related to dramatize

How to use dramatize in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for dramatize

dramatise

Derived forms of dramatize