Definition of 'colonize'
Word forms: 3rd person singular present
tense colonizes
, present participle colonizing
, past tense, past participle colonized
regional note: in BRIT, also use colonise
1. verb
The first British attempt to colonize Ireland was in the twelfth century. [VERB noun]
Liberia was never colonised by the European powers. [VERB noun]
For more than 400 years, we were a colonized people. [VERB-ed]
colonizerWord forms: plural colonizers countable noun [usually plural]
To the former Belgian colonizers, Rwanda was a paradise.
2. verb
3. verb [usually passive]
COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Video: pronunciation of 'colonize'
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Derived forms
adjective
colonization (ˌcoloniˈzation) or colonisation (ˌcoloniˈsation)
noun
colonizer (ˈcoloˌnizer) or coloniser (ˈcoloˌniser)
noun
verb transitiveWord forms: ˈcoloˌnized or ˈcoloˌnizing
1.
to found or establish a colony or colonies in
2.
to settle (persons) in a colony
verb intransitive
4.
to found or establish a colony or colonies
5.
to settle in a colony
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Derived forms
noun
colonizer (ˈcoloˌnizer)
noun
Trends of 'colonize'
Used Occasionally. colonize is one of the 30000 most commonly used words in the Collins dictionary
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Translations for 'colonize'
British English: colonize VERB
If people colonize a foreign country, they go to live there and take control of it.
The first British attempt to colonize Ireland was in the twelfth century.
- American English: colonize
- Brazilian Portuguese: colonizar
- Chinese: 把…变为殖民地
- European Spanish: colonizar
- French: coloniser
- German: kolonisieren
- Italian: colonizzare
- Japanese: 植民地にする
- Korean: 식민지로 만들다
- European Portuguese: colonizar
- Spanish: colonizar
Nearby words of 'colonize'
Source
Definition of colonize from the
Collins English Dictionary
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