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fetishize

American

[fet-i-shahyz] / ˈfɛt ɪˌʃaɪz /

especially British, fetishise

verb (used with object)

fetishized, fetishizing

to make a fetish of.

fetishize British

/ ˈfɛtɪʃˌaɪz /

verb

(tr) to be excessively or irrationally devoted to (an object, activity, etc)

"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

Other Word Forms

fetishization

noun

Etymology

Origin of fetishize

fetish + -ize

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.

We’ve been taught to fetishize our suffering and villainize our joy — that working toward a long-term goal should feel like work.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 27, 2026

On this week’s Amicus podcast, he explained to Dahlia Lithwick that the inclination to fetishize that which can be justified legally has a way of opening the door to atrocities that cannot be tolerated.

From Slate • Feb. 3, 2026

We do not have the luxury to fetishize dystopia, because we, or our ancestors, have already lived through it.

From Salon • Jul. 29, 2023

He didn’t want to fetishize America as an outsider, or rain judgment on it.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 13, 2022

We fetishize the tax code and its deductions and credits and refunds.

From New York Times • Sep. 3, 2022

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023