materialize

especially British, materialise

[muh-teer-ee-uh-lahyz]

verb (used without object)

materialized, materializing 

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

   Our plans never materialized.

   Synonyms: issue, rise, show, emerge

2. to assume material or bodily form; become corporeal.

   The ghost materialized before Hamlet.

verb (used with object)

materialized, materializing 

1. to give material form to; realize.

   This year, she materialized her long-held ambition to go to law school.

2. to invest with material attributes.

   The writer materializes the more abstract ideas with metaphors, making the concepts easier to grasp.

3. to make physically perceptible; cause (a spirit or the like) to appear in bodily form.

4. to render materialistic.

materialize

/ məˈtɪərɪəˌlaɪz /

verb

1. (intr) to become fact; actually happen

   our hopes never materialized

2. to invest or become invested with a physical shape or form

3. to cause (a spirit, as of a dead person) to appear in material form or (of a spirit) to appear in such form

4. (intr) to take shape; become tangible

   after hours of discussion, the project finally began to materialize

5. physics to form (material particles) from energy, as in pair production

Other Word Forms

• materialization noun
• materializer noun
• rematerialize verb
• unmaterialized adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of materialize¹

First recorded in 1700–10; material + -ize

Example Sentences

They materialize in the kitchen year after year, radiating earnest goodwill, and yet somehow leave a trail of small calamities in their wake.

Read more on Salon

While this means a potential positive surprise didn’t materialize, it has no impact on forecasts for the Danish drugmaker, the analysts say.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

If the potential merger with Grab materializes, it will serve as an upside catalyst to GoTo’s share price, they add.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

If the revenue necessary to service that debt doesn’t materialize, lenders could take a hit, spilling over into debt markets, said Berezin.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Her dream of landing a full-time journalism job has yet to materialize.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• appear 
• emerge 
• happen 
• occur 
• realize 
• take place 
• turn up 
• unfold