vulgarize

[ vuhl-guh-rahyz ]

verb (used with object)

, vul·gar·ized, vul·gar·iz·ing.

1. to make vulgar or coarse; lower; debase:

   to vulgarize standards of behavior.

2. to make (a technical or abstruse work) easier to understand and more widely known; popularize.
3. to translate (a work) from a classical language into the vernacular.

vulgarize

/ ˈvʌlɡəˌraɪz /

verb

1. to make commonplace or vulgar; debase
2. to make (something little known or difficult to understand) widely known or popular among the public; popularize

Derived Forms

• ˈvulgarˌizer, noun
• ˌvulgariˈzation, noun

Other Words From

• vulgar·i·zation noun
• vulgar·izer noun
• un·vulgar·ize verb (used with object) unvulgarized unvulgarizing

Word History and Origins

Origin of vulgarize¹

First recorded in 1595–1605; vulgar + -ize

Example Sentences

In “Children of Light,” his Hollywood novel, he wrote: “There are people at this table who could vulgarize pure light.”

From New York Times

James Ellroy served as one of two grand masters for the awards, saying, "We are here to vulgarize literature."

From Los Angeles Times

"People will call and ask for 30 seconds of tape, and we won't charge them, so you'll hear my voice sometimes. But I love baseball, and I don't want to be part of anything that would cheapen it or vulgarize it."

From Los Angeles Times

"So it does little but caricature and vulgarize the strike movement."

From Reuters

Lustres applied with skill and restraint enhance the most beautiful glaze, but in unskilled hands they inevitably vulgarize and cheapen.

From Project Gutenberg