realization
Americannoun
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the making or being made real of something imagined, planned, etc.
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the result of such a process.
The new church was the realization of a ten-year dream.
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the act of realizing or the state of being realized.
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an instance or result of realizing.
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Music.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of realization
First recorded in 1605–15; from French réalisation; equivalent to realize + -ation
Explanation
A realization is the act of becoming completely aware of something. Many children who walk into a circus tent for the first time are struck with the realization that clowns are terrifying. A realization is a gradual or sudden understanding or comprehension of something. Another way to use the word realization is to mean the fulfillment of something that was previously only imagined, like the realization of your dream of becoming a pastry chef, or the realization on stage of the play you scribbled on napkins and scraps of paper. Realization grew out of the French réaliser, "to make real."
Vocabulary lists containing realization
From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
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Lesson 9
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Camp Panda
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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.
Individuals were treated as raw material for the realization of the state’s ends.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 3, 2026
When I first saw Linda, it was stages of realization.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 26, 2026
It began with a realization that underpins the rapidly shifting sentiment about private credit: It simply isn’t as great an investment as it once was.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 20, 2026
That cruel realization haunts the cash-strapped protagonist of English filmmaker Mark Jenkin’s transfixing, increasingly despairing “Rose of Nevada.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 19, 2026
“The Ace of Anarchy,” Ella said, the realization rattling her.
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
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.
