denationalisation

IPA/diːˌnæʃ.ən.əl.aɪˈzeɪ.ʃən/
IPA/diːˌnæʃ.ən.əl.əˈzeɪ.ʃən/

denationalisation — noun

  • denationalisationsingular
  • denationalisationsplural

1. the process of moving a business or an entire industry out of government ownersh

1.nounC1
Definition

the process of moving a business or an entire industry out of government ownership and into the hands of private companies or investors

Example

Tuan studied the denationalisation of Vietnam's coffee export industry in his thesis.

denationalisation + of + [industry]

The denationalisation of the railway company led to lower ticket prices for Iker.

Common collocations
  • denationalisation of
  • denationalisation programme
  • denationalisation process
  • mass denationalisation
  • partial denationalisation
Synonyms
  • privatisation

    broader term covering any transfer to private ownership; denationalisation specifically implies a return from state control

  • divestiture

    formal term, often used for selling off parts of a state-owned enterprise rather than an entire industry

Antonyms
  • nationalisation

    the opposite process: bringing private industries under government ownership

  • state acquisition

    when a government takes control of a private company or sector

Grammar Patterns

denationalisation + of + [industry/sector]

Usage Note

British spelling; the US form is denationalization. Typically followed by 'of' plus the name of the industry or sector being transferred.

Common Mistakes

After living abroad for ten years, he faced denationalisation.
After living abroad for ten years, he faced denaturalisation.
denationalisation is about industries, not about a person losing citizenship.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Denationalisation refers specifically to returning a state-owned industry to private hands — it is the direct reversal of nationalisation. Privatisation is the broader term and covers any transfer of government assets to private ownership, even if the industry was never formally nationalised. Divestiture is narrower still: it usually describes a government selling off a particular subsidiary or asset rather than an entire sector, and it appears most often in formal business or legal writing. Deregulation is frequently confused with denationalisation but means something quite different — removing government rules and restrictions from an industry, without necessarily changing who owns it. Liberalisation overlaps with deregulation but is wider in scope, covering the opening up of markets to competition, often across national borders. For example, a government might deregulate its airline industry (allowing carriers to set their own prices) while keeping the national airline under state ownership — that is deregulation without denationalisation.

privatisation ↗divestiture ↗deregulation ↗liberalisation

Common collocations

Nouns

  • denationalisation programme
  • denationalisation process
  • denationalisation policy
  • denationalisation plan

Phrases

  • mass denationalisation
  • partial denationalisation
  • the denationalisation of state assets

Prepositions

  • denationalisation of

Etymology

FrenchEnglish

Formed in English by adding the prefix de- (meaning 'removal' or 'reversal') to nationalisation. The model was likely the French dénationalisation, which appeared in political and economic discourse in the early 20th century. The term gained wider use in Britain from the 1950s onward, as governments debated reversing the post-war nationalisations of key industries.