plasticize

American  

[plas-tuh-sahyz] / ˈplæs təˌsaɪz /

especially British, plasticise

verb (used with or without object)

plasticized, plasticizing

1. to render or become plastic.

---

plasticize British  

/ ˈplæstɪˌsaɪz /

verb

1. to make or become plastic, as by the addition of a plasticizer

---

Other Word Forms

• plasticization
  noun
• unplasticized
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of plasticize

First recorded in 1925–30; plastic + -ize

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

plasticize plasticized plasticizing

V. render soft &c. adj.; soften, mollify, mellow, relax, temper; mash, knead, squash. bend, yield, relent, relax, give. plasticize'.

From Roget's Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases by Roget, Peter Mark

“I don’t want a plasticized world,” she said.

From Salon ● Jan. 11, 2024

Like an updated Pleistocene woolly mammoth trapped in an ice floe or ancient arthropods caught in tree resin, the plasticized clothing is caught between an industrial past and its faltering present.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 17, 2022

That is so despite the fact — or perhaps because — the bodies are part of “Body: The Exhibition,” yet another of the traveling events made up of the plasticized dead.

From New York Times ● Jul. 1, 2017

Most recently, the plasticized bodies of the Body Worlds exhibits draw thousands.

From Washington Times ● Feb. 4, 2017

I could see him as I approached: His hair was parted neatly on the left side in a way that he would have found absolutely horrifying, and his face was plasticized.

From "The Fault in Our Stars" by John Green

Marx said one possible advantage for Kraemer is that it will custom-order “super plasticizing, self-consolidating concrete,” so the high-rise bridge won’t have to compete with other projects needing standard concrete.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 22, 2022

For example, one of the plasticizing agents may act even more strongly than another insecticide to make malathion more dangerous.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson