patronize

[ pey-truh-nahyz, pa‐ ]

/ ˈpeɪ trəˌnaɪz, ˈpæ‐ /

verb (used with object), pa·tron·ized, pa·tron·iz·ing.

to give (a store, restaurant, hotel, etc.) one's regular patronage; trade with.

to behave in an offensively condescending manner toward: a professor who patronizes his students.

to act as a patron toward (an artist, institution, etc.); support.

Nearby words

Also especially British, pa·tron·ise.

Origin of patronize

First recorded in 1580–90; patron + -ize

Related forms

pa·tron·iz·a·ble, adjectivepa·tron·i·za·tion, nounpa·tron·iz·er, nounre·pa·tron·ize, verb (used with object), re·pa·tron·ized, re·pa·tron·iz·ing.

trans·pa·tron·ize, verb (used with object), trans·pa·tron·ized, trans·pa·tron·iz·ing.un·pa·tron·iz·a·ble, adjectivewell-pa·tron·ized, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for patronise

I wonder how a chap like Bracebridge can patronise him, or how a big fellow like Lemon can condescend to speak to him.
Ernest Bracebridge|William H. G. Kingston
But his chief care and intention was to patronise George Fox.
A Book of Quaker Saints|Lucy Violet Hodgkin
We must now consider the partridges that patronise the hills.
Birds of the Indian Hills|Douglas Dewar
Isabel had meanwhile another visitor, whom it was not, even behind her back, so easy a matter to patronise.
The Portrait of a Lady|Henry James

He was leaning over the counter, and she concluded he had come to patronise the shop.
Verner's Pride|Mrs. Henry Wood

British Dictionary definitions for patronise

patronize

patronise

/ (ˈpætrəˌnaɪz) /

verb

to behave or treat in a condescending way

(tr) to act as a patron or patroness by sponsoring or bringing trade to

Derived Formspatronizer or patroniser, 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 patronise

patronise

chiefly British English spelling of patronize (q.v.); for suffix, see -ize.

patronize

1580s, "to act as a patron towards," from patron + -ize, or from Old French patroniser. Meaning "treat in a condescending way" is first attested 1797; sense of "give regular business to" is from 1801. Related: Patronized; patronizing.