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sensitize

[ sen-si-tahyz ]
/ ˈsɛn sɪˌtaɪz /
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See synonyms for: sensitize / sensitized on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), sen·si·tized, sen·si·tiz·ing.
to render sensitive.
Photography. to render (a film or the like) sensitive to light or other forms of radiant energy.
Immunology. to render sensitive to an antigenic substance.
verb (used without object), sen·si·tized, sen·si·tiz·ing.
to become sensitized.
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Also especially British, sen·si·tise .

Origin of sensitize

First recorded in 1855–60; sensit(ive) + -ize

OTHER WORDS FROM sensitize

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use sensitize in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for sensitize

sensitize

sensitise

/ (ˈsɛnsɪˌtaɪz) /

verb
to make or become sensitive
(tr) to render (an individual) sensitive to a drug, allergen, etc
(tr) photog to make (a material) sensitive to light or to other actinic radiation, esp to light of a particular colour, by coating it with a photographic emulsion often containing special chemicals, such as dyes

Derived forms of sensitize

sensitization or sensitisation, nounsensitizer or sensitiser, noun
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
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