utilize
Americanverb (used with object)
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utilizes,
present (3rd person singular)
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utilized,
past participle, past
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utilizing
present participle
verb
Usage
What is another way to say utilize? To utilize something is to put it to use or turn it to profitable account. How is utilize different from use? Learn more on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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utilizationnoun
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utilizernoun
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overutilizeverb (used with object)
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preutilizeverb (used with object)
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reutilizeverb (used with object)
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half-utilizedadjective
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nonutilizedadjective
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preutilizableadjective
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quasi-utilizedadjective
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underutilizedadjective
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unutilizableadjective
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unutilizedadjective
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utilizableadjective
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well-utilizedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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utilizesimple
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utilizessimple
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have utilizedperfect
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has utilizedperfect
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am utilizingprogressive
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are utilizingprogressive
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is utilizingprogressive
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have been utilizingperfect progressive
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has been utilizingperfect progressive
Past
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utilizedsimple
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had utilizedperfect
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was utilizingprogressive
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were utilizingprogressive
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had been utilizingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of utilize
First recorded in 1800–10; from French utiliser, equivalent to utile “useful” ( see utile) + -iser -ize
Explanation
To utilize is to use what you have or what's available, and it's a three-syllable word meaning the same thing as the one-syllable "use." The word utilize is often a more formal way to express "putting something to use." If you don’t have time to go to the store but you need to come up with a science project, you might utilize what's already in the kitchen. Most of the time you can use the verb use as a synonym for utilize. You can utilize a shorter word to make a sentence easier to read.
Vocabulary lists containing utilize
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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"Creativity at Work" and "The Hidden Secrets of the Creative Mind"
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Content Summary 4.1: Causes and Consequences of Iberian Maritime Exploration and Colonialism
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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.
See Examples For:
I learned to appreciate where my food came from and how to utilize every ingredient and part of the animal.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026
There were other features in the app that I didn’t fully utilize, like journal prompts, mood trackers, meditations, and more.
From Slate ● Sep. 6, 2026
And yet, the film fails to utilize either to its advantage, wasting great talent and a halfway-decent premise on mind-numbing dialogue, repetitive plotting and dour lighting.
From Salon ● Sep. 2, 2026
“Treasury is not going to utilize its entire rainy day fund to fund its buyback program. This is not exactly Draghi-esque, a do-whatever-it-takes moment. This is not Ben Bernanke’s bazooka,” Brusuelas said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026
How might you utilize the music teacher in your school to enhance your lesson?
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
But Mr. Tommasini also utilizes more recent academic scholarship, as well as personal interviews with individuals such as the opera star Leontyne Price, who viewed Anderson as a role model.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Argentine choreographer Gabriela Carrizo makes her debut directing opera and utilizes her alarmingly vibrant Belgian dance company, Peeping Tom.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
SpaceX utilizes an industry-dominating launch business to support Starlink and, eventually, its artificial-intelligence wing.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026
Gleich, who was also Utah’s democratic nominee for Senate in 2024, utilizes her online platform of nearly 400,000 combined followers to raise awareness about the Stratos project.
From Salon ● Jun. 12, 2026
The basic approach utilizes discovery in terms of music learning, and also is synchronous with many of the 21st-century learning approaches discussed in Chapter 1.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
But, he says, “I do think it’s fair to note that we have seemingly changed our general perceptions about whether major index options are better utilized as tools for speculation rather than risk management.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
The photographic technologies utilized begin with daguerreotypes and include stereoscopic prints, a cyanotype, gelatin silver prints, large-format chromogenic works and images created with digital manipulation, neatly demonstrating the show’s long time span.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
“When we have had complex cases in which a patient required additional anti-venom therapy, we have utilized existing protocols to obtain additional doses from our suppliers,” the statement said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
“The U.S. has, for a whole variety of reasons, never utilized a technical ‘dead man’s switch,'” historian Garrett Graff, an expert on continuity of government, told the Associated Press.
From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026
Such natural control needs to be utilized to the fullest extent.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
And much like Parsons, Hopper, and the other established columnists of the fan magazine era, there’s a push towards utilizing these same studios to further one’s brand.
From Salon ● Sep. 9, 2026
Customers are utilizing Falcon Flex, the company’s flexible licensing model, to buy a prepaid balance of funds for use across various modules.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026
"The Department is utilizing every available tool to meet the demands of our current operations."
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
Tokyo pledges that Japan will become "the world's most-friendly country for developing and utilizing AI".
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
“Oui,” you tell him, utilizing the summation of almost three years of high school French.
From "Odd One Out" by Nic Stone
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.
