monetize

American  

[mon-i-tahyz, muhn-] / ˈmɒn ɪˌtaɪz, ˈmʌn- /

especially British, monetise

verb (used with object)

monetized, monetizing

1. to legalize as money.

2. to coin into money.

   to monetize gold.

3. to give the character of money to.

4. Economics. to convert (a debt, especially the national debt) into currency, especially by issuing government securities or notes.

5. to make a profit or derive income from.

   Lots of people download the game, but the start-up hasn’t been able to monetize the add-on features.

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monetize British  

/ ˈmʌnɪˌtaɪz /

verb

1. to establish as the legal tender of a country

2. to give a legal value to (a coin)

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Other Word Forms

• monetization
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of monetize

First recorded in 1875–80; from Latin monēt(a) money + -ize

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Explanation

To monetize is to make money. If you write a popular blog, figure out how to monetize it so you don’t work for free. To monetize also means to establish a country's legal tender, as in to literally make money. The word money hides in monetize because it’s all about money. Establishing a new currency, or printing money, is what happens when a country monetizes, like when the European Union decided to monetize the Euro as its new currency. This verb is sometimes used to mean "exchange for money.” These days, monetize often refers to figuring out a way to make money from a website or app.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

monetize monetized monetizing

There are also lingering concerns that Google may struggle to monetize its own large-language model Gemini and AI search tools to the degree it has traditional search.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

Slower adoption could further complicate the search for revenue, particularly for companies already struggling to monetize the technology.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 25, 2026

The company announced new capabilities for its Copilot app, part of its push to monetize its artificial intelligence.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026

That signals that Microsoft may be able to monetize more of its Azure computing power than he previously expected.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026

Data-center operators monetize commitments by users to utilize capacity.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026

In a statement, the Vulins said they were relieved by Thursday’s ruling but disappointed “the person who provoked this encounter with hate speech then filmed and monetized it, faces no consequences.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026

It’s also nostalgic in a way that finally seems imperative in today’s Hollywood that reeks of hollow, monetized sentimentality about its past.

From Salon ● Oct. 19, 2026

The consensus view broadly has been that the Google parent’s search and cloud businesses have successfully monetized AI, making it a front-runner in the race for AI dominance.

From Barron's ● Jun. 23, 2026

Most investors have long had faith that AI models could eventually be monetized.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 9, 2026

We were just coming into an age where clicks were being measured and monetized.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

Meta is already monetizing Muse’s growth, with subscription tiers costing $20 or $100 a month for heavier users.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026

Daily active users of Meta products rose by 3% compared to last year, reaching 3.64 billion people, while the social-media company also did a better job of monetizing advertising, the analyst says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

“They probably got over their skis in terms of monetizing the platform at the detriment to user experience, and they’ve reset the growth plan and pivoted back to focusing on user experience,” he said.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026

Apple is shifting its focus toward monetizing its expanding installed base in markets including India, Brazil and Mexico through greater adoption of higher-priced Pro-series models, he says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

That could further reward companies already monetizing the historic capital expenditures necessitated by the AI build-out and punish those still burning cash on promises, according to market analysts.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 19, 2026

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