realizing

Meanings

1. 1verbtransitive or intransitive

   Coming to understand a fact or situation fully, often suddenly.

   Grammar: Often takes a that-clause: realizing that he was late.

   Patterns

   • realizing that something
   • realizing something

   Realizing she had left her keys inside, she called a locksmith.

   He sat up in bed, realizing the exam was today.

   Without realizing it, I had been humming the whole time.

2. 2verbtransitive

   Making a hope, plan or ambition actually happen.

   Grammar: Takes an object: realizing a dream.

   Patterns

   • realizing a dream
   • realizing an ambition

   She is realizing a lifelong dream by opening a bakery.

   The team worked for years realizing the founder's vision.

   He is slowly realizing his goal of running a marathon.

Common combinations

realizing too late

Realizing too late, he missed the last train.

without realizing

Without realizing, she walked past the exit.

realizing a dream

Realizing a dream takes patience.

suddenly realizing

Suddenly realizing the time, they rushed out.

realizing the importance

Realizing the importance of sleep, he changed his habits.

Synonyms and how they differ

noticing

Noticing is about seeing a detail, while realizing is about grasping what it means.

understanding

Understanding may be gradual, and realizing often feels like a moment of insight.

fulfilling

Fulfilling a dream stresses meeting a need, while realizing it stresses making it real.

recognizing

Recognizing means identifying something you already know, whereas realizing is discovering something new.

Opposites

Word family

realize verb

to become aware or make real

realization noun

the moment of understanding or the achievement

realized adjective

made real or fully understood

real adjective

actually existing

Commonly confused: realizing or realising?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “realizing”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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