Romanize

American  

[roh-muh-nahyz] / ˈroʊ məˌnaɪz /

especially British, Romanise

verb (used with object)

Romanized, Romanizing

1. to make Roman Catholic.

2. (often lowercase) to make Roman in character.

3. (often lowercase) to render in the Latin alphabet, especially a language traditionally written in a different system, as Chinese or Japanese.

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verb (used without object)

Romanized, Romanizing

1. to conform to Roman Catholic doctrine and practices; to become Roman Catholic.

2. (often lowercase) to follow Roman practices.

Romanize British  

/ ˈrəʊməˌnaɪz /

verb

1. (tr) to impart a Roman Catholic character to (a ceremony, practice, etc)

2. (intr) to be converted to Roman Catholicism

3. (tr) to transcribe or transliterate (a language) into the Roman alphabet

4. to make Roman in character, allegiance, style, etc

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Other Word Forms

• Romanization
  noun
• Romanizer
  noun

Etymology

Origin of Romanize

First recorded in 1600–10; Roman + -ize

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Romanize Romanized Romanizing

It was possible, it was easy, to Romanize these western peoples.

From The Romanization of Roman Britain by Haverfield, F. (Francis)

My son," she said, "I need not tell you not to let them Romanize you.

From Beric the Briton : a Story of the Roman Invasion by Henty, G. A. (George Alfred)

Dr. Webster also defines Romanize, "To Latinize; to conform to Romish opinions."

From The Grammar of English Grammars by Brown, Goold

It is perhaps fanciful to suggest that we are now suffering the penalty of the failure of Rome to Romanize, that is to say, to civilize their Teutonic neighbours.

From The Unity of Civilization by Various

Returning home, he found the Roman governor, Quintilius Varus, making efforts to Romanize the German tribes near the Rhine.

From The New Gresham Encyclopedia. Vol. 1 Part 2 Amiel to Atrauli by Various

Zhou Youguang created the Pinyin system of Romanized Chinese, which vastly increased literacy in China and eased the agonies of foreigners studying the language.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 14, 2017

The earliest written version of the name Jesus is Romanized today as Iesous.

From Slate ● Dec. 19, 2013

The books present the dialogue in four versions – Urdu, Hindi, Romanized Urdu and an English translation and require “about 20 stages of proof-reading,” Ms. Kabir said.

From New York Times ● Feb. 11, 2012

Korean rice cakes, Romanized as tteok, are a staple ingredient in the country’s cuisine.

From Washington Post

He had not expected this Romanized Jew to become zealous for the faith; instead, he knew that Classicus would have pursued none other for suspicion, but himself.

From Saul of Tarsus A Tale of the Early Christians by Miller, Elizabeth

“The Presbyterians not only succeeded in Romanizing the spoken Taiwanese language but also provided services such as education and healthcare that other churches did not provide,” she said.

From Seattle Times ● May 18, 2022

It is clear that Lanfranc had won the O'Briens to the Romanizing side; and Anselm was determined to hold them fast.

From St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh by Lawlor, Hugh Jackson

The Convention thought that it detected a "Romanizing germ" in the place assigned to "penitence," and an archaism in the temporal sense assigned to "space," and accordingly rearranged the whole sentence.

From A Short History of the Book of Common Prayer by Huntington, William Reed

Agricola’s Romanizing work must have made great changes in dress as in policy.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 4 "Coquelin" to "Costume" by Various

But he failed, and the Romanizing priests' party failed, and the peaceful leaders of the Pharisees failed, to shake their determination.

From Josephus by Bentwich, Norman