Meaning & use
Criminalized
Last updated
Made an act or activity illegal, subjecting it to criminal punishment.
See it in a sentence
Several countries have criminalized the use of plastic bags in an effort to reduce waste.
Homelessness should not be criminalized, advocates argued at the city council meeting.
A note on using this word
Criminalized is the past tense of 'criminalize,' a verb formed relatively recently, in the 20th century, from 'criminal' plus the suffix '-ize.'
Words with a similar meaning
outlawedbanned
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Words with an opposite meaning
legalizeddecriminalized
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