materialize

[ muh-teer-ee-uh-lahyz ]

verb (used without object)

, ma·te·ri·al·ized, ma·te·ri·al·iz·ing.

1. to come into perceptible existence; appear; become actual or real; be realized or carried out:

   Our plans never materialized.

   Synonyms: issue, rise, show, emerge

2. to assume material or bodily form; become corporeal:

   The ghost materialized before Hamlet.

verb (used with object)

, ma·te·ri·al·ized, ma·te·ri·al·iz·ing.

1. to give material form to; realize:

   This year, she materialized her long-held ambition to go to law school.

2. to invest with material attributes:

   The writer materializes the more abstract ideas with metaphors, making the concepts easier to grasp.

3. to make physically perceptible; cause (a spirit or the like) to appear in bodily form.
4. to render materialistic.

materialize

/ məˈtɪərɪəˌlaɪz /

verb

1. intr to become fact; actually happen

   our hopes never materialized

2. to invest or become invested with a physical shape or form
3. to cause (a spirit, as of a dead person) to appear in material form or (of a spirit) to appear in such form
4. intr to take shape; become tangible

   after hours of discussion, the project finally began to materialize

5. physics to form (material particles) from energy, as in pair production

Derived Forms

• maˈterialˌizer, noun
• maˌterialiˈzation, noun

Other Words From

• ma·te·ri·al·i·za·tion [m, uh, -teer-ee-, uh, -lahy-, zey, -sh, uh, n], noun
• ma·te·ri·al·iz·er noun
• re·ma·te·ri·al·ize verb rematerialized rematerializing
• un·ma·te·ri·al·ized adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of materialize¹

First recorded in 1700–10; material + -ize

Example Sentences

The first in the final episodes of the series premiered Sunday after rampant speculation about the future of Costner’s protagonist and as a slate of spin-offs have materialized.

From Los Angeles Times

Recollect the many anticipated “presidential pivots” that failed to materialize during Trump’s first time in office.

From Los Angeles Times

Though that astronomical sum never materialized, The New York Times found that oil and gas interests donated an estimated $75 million to Trump’s campaign, the Republican National Committee, and affiliated committees.

From Salon

But through two ACL tears and multiple coaching changes, his moment never quite materialized.

From Los Angeles Times

The promised well-paying jobs did not materialize, and most of those who relocated traded rural for urban poverty.

From Salon

Related Words

• appear
• emerge
• happen
• occur
• realize
• take place
• turn up
• unfold