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definitions

urbanize

[ ur-buh-nahyz ]
/ ˈɜr bəˌnaɪz /
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR urbanize ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), ur·ban·ized, ur·ban·iz·ing.

to make or cause to become urban, as a locality.

RELATED WORDS

sophisticate, metropolitanize

Nearby words

  1. urbanist,
  2. urbanistic,
  3. urbanite,
  4. urbanity,
  5. urbanization,
  6. urbanized,
  7. urbanology,
  8. urbi et orbi,
  9. urbiculture,
  10. urc
Also especially British, ur·ban·ise.

Origin of urbanize

First recorded in 1635–45; urban + -ize
Related formsur·ban·i·za·tion, nounnon·ur·ban·ized, adjectiveo·ver·ur·ban·ize, verb, o·ver·ur·ban·ized, o·ver·ur·ban·iz·ing.un·ur·ban·ized, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
British Dictionary definitions for urbanize

urbanize

urbanise

/ (ˈɜːbəˌnaɪz) /

verb (tr)

(usually passive)
  1. to make (esp a predominantly rural area or country) more industrialized and urban
  2. to cause the migration of an increasing proportion of (rural dwellers) into cities
Derived Formsurbanization or urbanisation, 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
Word Origin and History for urbanize

urbanize

v.

1640s, "to make more civil;" 1884 "to make into a city," from urban + -ize; in the latter sense from French urbaniser (1873). Related: Urbanized; urbanizing.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper