Synonyms

materialize

American

[muh-teer-ee-uh-lahyz] / məˈtɪər i əˌlaɪz /

especially British, materialise

verb (used without object)

materialized, materializing

to come into perceptible existence; appear; become actual or real; be realized or carried out.

Our plans never materialized.

Synonyms:

issue, rise, show, emerge
to assume material or bodily form; become corporeal.

The ghost materialized before Hamlet.

verb (used with object)

materialized, materializing

to give material form to; realize.

This year, she materialized her long-held ambition to go to law school.
to invest with material attributes.

The writer materializes the more abstract ideas with metaphors, making the concepts easier to grasp.
to make physically perceptible; cause (a spirit or the like) to appear in bodily form.
to render materialistic.

materialize British

/ məˈtɪərɪəˌlaɪz /

verb

(intr) to become fact; actually happen

our hopes never materialized
to invest or become invested with a physical shape or form
to cause (a spirit, as of a dead person) to appear in material form or (of a spirit) to appear in such form
(intr) to take shape; become tangible

after hours of discussion, the project finally began to materialize
physics to form (material particles) from energy, as in pair production

"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

materialization noun
materializer noun
rematerialize verb
unmaterialized adjective

Etymology

Origin of materialize

First recorded in 1700–10; material + -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.

Cultures clashed, synergies failed to materialize and profits sank.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026

The geopolitical headwinds are expected to have labor implications, but they also will take time to materialize since job recruitment typically takes four to eight weeks.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

That concern is particularly heightened if a fire doesn’t materialize — less of an issue for hurricanes.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 24, 2026

Bank of America’s fund manager survey for March showed a rise from a 2026 low of 3.2% to 4.2% so that could easily materialize.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 20, 2026

As if Chucha not only gives answers but makes them materialize, a face appears at the window of the small house.

From "Before We Were Free" by Julia Alvarez

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