Dictionary.com
definitions

institutionalize

[in-sti-too-shuh-nl-ahyz, -tyoo-]
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR institutionalize ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), in·sti·tu·tion·al·ized, in·sti·tu·tion·al·iz·ing.

to make institutional.
to make into or treat as an institution: the danger of institutionalizing racism.
to place or confine in an institution, especially one for the care of mental illness, alcoholism, etc.

RELATED CONTENT

Black Twitter
Read more in this article about some frequently asked questions and fun facts related to our definitions.
READ MORE

RELATED WORDS

regulate, systematize, order
Also especially British, in·sti·tu·tion·al·ise.

Origin of institutionalize

First recorded in 1860–65; institutional + -ize
Related formsin·sti·tu·tion·al·i·za·tion, nounre·in·sti·tu·tion·al·i·za·tion, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for institutionalize

Contemporary Examples of institutionalize

  • Her parents were told to institutionalize her, but thankfully, they bucked the conventional advice.

    The Daily Beast logo

  • Like Carver, Borlaug then sought to institutionalize his breakthroughs.

    The Daily Beast logo
    Growth Stocks

    The Daily Beast

    October 17, 2014

  • Therefore, any impulse to institutionalize the exclusion of the Muslim Brotherhood will be a catastrophe.

    The Daily Beast logo
    Coup by Acclamation?

    Hussein Ibish

    July 4, 2013

British Dictionary definitions for institutionalize

institutionalize

institutionalise

verb

(tr; often passive) to subject to the deleterious effects of confinement in an institutiona mental patient who was institutionalized into boredom and apathy
(tr) to place in an institution
to make or become an institution
Derived Formsinstitutionalization or institutionalisation, 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 institutionalize
v.

"to put into institutional life" (usually deprecatory), 1905; see institution. Related: Institutionalized. Earlier (1865) it meant "to make into an institution."

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Medicine definitions for institutionalize

institutionalize

[ĭn′stĭ-tōō′shə-nə-līz′]

v.

To place a person in the care of an institution, especially one providing care for the disabled or mentally ill.
Related formsin′sti•tu′tion•al•i•za′tion (-shə-nə-lĭ-zā′shən) n.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.