institutionalize

American

[in-sti-too-shuh-nl-ahyz, -tyoo-] / ˌɪn stɪˈtu ʃə nlˌaɪz, -ˈtyu- /

especially British, institutionalise

verb (used with object)

institutionalized, institutionalizing

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.

institutionalize British

/ ˌɪnstɪˈtjuːʃənəˌlaɪz /

verb

(tr; often passive) to subject to the deleterious effects of confinement in an institution

a mental patient who was institutionalized into boredom and apathy
(tr) to place in an institution
to make or become an institution

"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

institutionalization noun

Etymology

Origin of institutionalize

First recorded in 1860–65; institutional + -ize

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