patronize
Americanverb (used with object)
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patronizes,
present (3rd person singular)
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patronized,
past participle, past
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patronizing
present participle
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to give (a store, restaurant, hotel, etc.) one's regular patronage; trade with.
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to behave in an offensively condescending manner toward.
a professor who patronizes his students.
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to act as a patron toward (an artist, institution, etc.); support.
verb
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to behave or treat in a condescending way
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(tr) to act as a patron or patroness by sponsoring or bringing trade to
Usage
What does patronize mean? To patronize is to be a customer (or patron) of a business or other establishment. In this sense, patronize most often means to be a paying customer, especially a regular one. However, you can patronize establishments that are not businesses—you can patronize a library, for example. Example: I patronize local shops and restaurants whenever I can in order to support people in my own community, instead of enriching faceless corporations. Patronize also means to act condescendingly toward a person in a way that arrogantly implies that you’re being kind or helpful to that person. This often takes the form of speaking to someone as if they were a child. Someone who acts in this way can be described as patronizing. Example: Don’t patronize me, Jeff—I understand the topic just as well as you do.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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patronizationnoun
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patronizernoun
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repatronizeverb (used with object)
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transpatronizeverb (used with object)
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patronizableadjective
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unpatronizableadjective
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well-patronizedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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patronizesimple
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patronizessimple
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have patronizedperfect
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has patronizedperfect
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am patronizingprogressive
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are patronizingprogressive
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is patronizingprogressive
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have been patronizingperfect progressive
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has been patronizingperfect progressive
Past
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patronizedsimple
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had patronizedperfect
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was patronizingprogressive
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were patronizingprogressive
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had been patronizingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of patronize
Explanation
If you patronize a business, you shop there regularly. But if someone patronizes you, it's not so pleasant — they talk to you as if you were inferior or not very intelligent. Patronize comes from Latin patronus "protector, master," related to pater "father." So if you patronize a person, you talk down to them like a father might do to his child or a master to his apprentice. If you want to take an advanced class and your advisor warns you of all the hard work, you can tell him to stop patronizing you — you know a hard class involves hard work. This sounds much better than saying, "I'm not stupid!"
Vocabulary lists containing patronize
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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.
See Examples For:
We can easily patronize older people, and my mom, for one, is acutely aware of that.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026
Usually, people leave that stadium wondering why they continue to patronize the NFL.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
Who would patronize these houses of financial ill-repute?
From Barron's ● Apr. 7, 2026
As journalist Madeline Peltz has documented, after that, he “staged more and more debates on college campuses,” focused on generating “bite-sized clips” that showcased how Kirk “would patronize and shame” students, largely young women.
From Salon ● Nov. 21, 2025
Children were the marketers of the neighborhood and they would only patronize those stores that treated them well.
From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith
The opportunity is now for the public to show that it prefers non-idiocy in the media outlets it patronizes and is willing to pay for.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 9, 2026
She said the retailers she patronizes include Express, Shein, and Walmart.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 22, 2023
Desperate and lonely, a photo developer obsesses over members of a family that patronizes his booth in a department store.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 4, 2020
“Brimstone & Glory’s” greatest grace comes from its subjects, whom Jakovleski neither patronizes nor fetishizes.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 9, 2017
Thick rugs cover every floor, and paintings from several local artists she patronizes line our walls.
From "We Were Liars" by E. Lockhart
They know when they’re being patronized, even if they don’t always say it.
From Salon ● Nov. 5, 2025
Shops are open, sidewalk cafes are well patronized and cars clog the streets.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2024
She said the East was largely misunderstood by West Germans — belittled, patronized and often ignored.
From New York Times ● Apr. 26, 2024
Yet Uganda’s collecting class remains minuscule, with new shows patronized by hip youngsters and expatriates.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 15, 2023
They were patronized by their married contemporaries, they were vaguely felt sorry for, and were produced to date any stray extra man who happened to be visiting their friends.
From "Go Set a Watchman: A Novel" by Harper Lee
“It’s patronizing, the idea that people have a difficult time getting a driver’s license,” Wagner said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
You know how we adults are inclined to respond to such unbridled optimism: With patronizing pats on the head.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 4, 2026
You can empathize with your friend without demonizing your own position or patronizing her by saying everything will be OK.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 2, 2026
Epstein had made donations to Krauss’ Origins Project, part of his larger patronizing of the sciences.
From Salon ● Feb. 6, 2026
The Blue Fairy Godmother left, amused and patronizing.
From "Slaughterhouse-Five" by Kurt Vonnegut
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
