civilize

[ siv-uh-lahyz ]

verb (used with object)

, civ·i·lized, civ·i·liz·ing.

1. to bring out of a savage, uneducated, or rude state; make civil; elevate in social and private life; enlighten; refine:

   Rome civilized the barbarians.

   Synonyms: sophisticate, polish, instruct, teach, educate

civilize

/ ˈsɪvɪˌlaɪz /

verb

1. to bring out of savagery or barbarism into a state characteristic of civilization
2. to refine, educate, or enlighten

Derived Forms

• ˈciviˌlizable, adjective
• ˈciviˌlizer, noun

Other Words From

• civi·liza·ble adjective
• civ·i·liz·a·to·ry [siv-, uh, -, lahy, -z, uh, -tawr-ee, -tohr-ee], adjective
• civi·lizer noun
• de·civi·lize verb (used with object) decivilized decivilizing
• non·civi·liza·ble adjective
• over·civi·lize verb overcivilized overcivilizing
• un·civi·liza·ble adjective
• un·civi·lize verb (used with object) uncivilized uncivilizing

Word History and Origins

Origin of civilize¹

1595–1605; < French civiliser; civil, -ize

Example Sentences

In 1809, John Adams, a descendant of New England Puritans and by then a former president, wrote, “I will insist that the Hebrews have done more to civilize Men than any other Nation. If I were an Atheist and believed in blind eternal Fate, I should still believe that Fate had ordained the Jews to be the most essential Instrument for civilizing the Nations.”

From Salon

Religious and private institutions ran many of the schools and received federal funding as partners in government programs to “civilize” Indigenous students.

From Seattle Times

As many historians and commentators pointed out, this is a barely-updated version of the apologetics slave owners used in the 19th century, in which they portrayed Black people as "savages" who needed white people to "civilize" them.

From Salon

Learning cricket — a sport that British settlers around the world imagined could be used to “civilize” colonized populations — was part of that transition, and from the early 1860s, matches between Aboriginal and white teams were promoted as a novelty.

From New York Times

Pretty much all of the major Season 3 elements are put back into play here, including the stifling New Republic bureaucracy on Coruscant, the efforts of the High Magistrate Greef Karga to civilize Nevarro, the mystery of what happened to Moff Gideon, the splintering of Mandalorian tribes, Paz Vizsla’s unwelcoming attitude, and Bo-Katan’s encounter with the Mythosaur.

From New York Times

Related Words

• acquaint
• enlighten
• ennoble
• humanize
• idealize
• refine
• sophisticate
• tame