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racialize

American  
[rey-shuh-lahyz] / ˈreɪ ʃəˌlaɪz /
especially British, racialise

verb (used with object)

racialized, racializing
  1. to impose a racial interpretation on; place in a racial context.

  2. to perceive, view, or experience in a racial context.

  3. to categorize or differentiate on the basis of membership in a racial group.


racialize British  
/ ˈreɪʃəˌlaɪz /

verb

  1. (tr) to render racial in tone or content

"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

Other Word Forms

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:

Glasberg argues that “while it is imperative to be aware of ‘race’ to extirpate racism, it is unnecessary to continue to racialize groups victimized by racism.”

From Washington Post Sep. 6, 2019

“It is very dangerous to racialize sexual harassment,” says Tiina Rosenberg, a founding member of Sweden’s feminist party, the Feminist Initiative, and a gender scholar and professor at Stockholm University.

From Time Jan. 19, 2016

“It saddens me that so many years after our democracy we still have to racialize things,” Mr. Mthetwa said.

From New York Times Oct. 9, 2012

We talked about In re Turner pushing back against racialized apprenticeship laws to expand the 13th Amendment and inform the 14th Amendment.

From Slate Aug. 10, 2026

For racialized communities, such as immigrants, the cognitive load could be even heavier, and the option to simply stop watching is much harder to exercise when the news is about their country of origin.

From Science Daily Jun. 16, 2026

For Melendez-Badillo, language has become "coded for the broader sort of racialized understandings of immigrants and immigration... this sort of nationalist idea of who gets to belong in the United States."

From Barron's Jan. 31, 2026

“We remain committed to defending lawful policies that reject this kind of racialized thinking and instead promote unity and equal treatment under the law,” she said.

From Los Angeles Times May 20, 2025

He insisted that blindness and indifference to racial groups is actually more important than racial hostility to the creation and maintenance of racialized systems of control.

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

In keeping with contemporary trends, the production avoids simplistically racializing the societal division.

From Los Angeles Times Apr. 14, 2021

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