commodify

American  

[kuh-mod-uh-fahy] / kəˈmɒd əˌfaɪ /

Also commoditize

verb (used with object)

commodified, commodifying

1. to turn into a commodity; make commercial.

2. to treat as if a commodity.

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commodify British  

/ kəˈmɒdɪˌfaɪ /

verb

1. (tr) to treat (something) inappropriately as if it can be acquired or marketed like other commodities

   you can't commodify art

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Other Word Forms

• commodifiable adjective
• commodification noun

Etymology

Origin of commodify

First recorded in 1975–80; commod(ity) ( def. ) + -ify ( def. )

Explanation

If your friend was charging you money to hang out with him, he would be trying to commodify your relationship, which means "turn into an opportunity to make money." Commodify comes from commodity, which often means "an item that can be bought and sold for money," plus the suffix -ify which is usually used to mean "make or turn into." So this word means "to make or turn into something that can be bought and sold for money." This term is often used in a disapproving way to imply that whatever is being commodified shouldn't be, maybe because it's special or private.

Example Sentences

“Maybe the hotel industry will finally start paying attention and realize they can’t commodify privacy,” she said, “because people will just take their money and their travel budget to hotels that still have bathroom doors.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 20, 2026

"It's driven by this desire to make money out of this – the more likes people can get the more they can possibly commodify the photography they're getting in these places", Garrett said.

From BBC • Jan. 12, 2026

In some ways, it’s no wonder that artists are more inclined to be introspective right now, leaning into the personal to commodify pages from their diaries.

From Salon • Feb. 5, 2025

The pursuit of online fame, particularly through Instagram, has supercharged the often toxic phenomenon, The Times found, encouraging parents to commodify their daughter’s images.

From New York Times • Feb. 22, 2024

According to Andrews and a dissenting California Supreme Court judge, the ruling didn’t prevent commercialization; it just took patients out of the equation and emboldened scientists to commodify tissues in increasing numbers.

From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot