Meaning & use
decriminalize
Last updated
Meaning
verbtransitiveformal
To change the law so that an act or possession is no longer a crime punished through the courts.
Grammar: Takes an object: lawmakers decriminalized the offense; it is often passive: the practice was decriminalized.
Patterns
- decriminalize something
- something is decriminalized
The state voted to decriminalize possession of small amounts of the drug.
Several countries have decriminalized begging in recent years.
Campaigners want parliament to decriminalize the act and treat it as a health issue.
Word forms
| third person singular | decriminalizes |
|---|---|
| past tense | decriminalized |
| past participle | decriminalized |
| -ing form | decriminalizing |
Common combinations
- decriminalize possession
- The city decided to decriminalize possession of small amounts.
- decriminalize and regulate
- Some argue we should decriminalize and regulate the trade.
- vote to decriminalize
- Lawmakers voted to decriminalize minor traffic offenses.
- call for something to be decriminalized
- Doctors called for the practice to be decriminalized.
- fully decriminalize
- The country fully decriminalized the act in 2019.
Synonyms and how they differ
- legalize
- Legalize makes something fully lawful and often regulated, while decriminalize only removes criminal punishment and may leave fines or other rules in place.
- decriminalise
- This is the British spelling and means exactly the same as decriminalize.
- liberalize
- Liberalize means to make laws or rules less strict in general, whereas decriminalize specifically ends criminal penalties.
Opposites
Word family
- decriminalization noun
- the act of removing criminal penalties
- criminalize verb
- to make something a crime
- criminal adjective
- relating to crime
- crime noun
- an act that breaks the law and can be punished
Commonly confused: decriminalize or legalize?
decriminalize vs legalize
Legalize means making something fully lawful, often with licenses and rules. To decriminalize means only that it is no longer punished as a crime, so it may still be banned or fined.
Practice
What is the main difference between decriminalizing and legalizing an activity?
Choose one answer.
A decriminalized act may still be forbidden or fined but is no longer a crime. The first two options swap the meanings, and the third ignores a real legal difference.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “decriminalize”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.