denationalization

IPA/ˌdiːˌnæʃnəlaɪˈzeɪʃn/
KK[dˌinˌæʃənəlɪzˈeʃən]IPA/ˌdiːˌnæʃnələˈzeɪʃn/

denationalization — noun

  • denationalizationsingular
  • denationalizationsplural

1. the process of selling companies, industries, or assets that are owned by the na

1.nounC1
Definition

the process of selling companies, industries, or assets that are owned by the national government to private investors or businesses, so that they are no longer under state control

Example

The government completed the denationalization of the national airline last year, selling its shares to a private consortium.

denationalization of + specific industry

Supporters of denationalization argue that private companies often provide better services at lower costs to the public.

supporters/opponents of denationalization

Common collocations
  • denationalization of [industry / sector / company]
  • complete / carry out / oversee denationalization
  • denationalization programme / plan / policy
  • support / oppose / call for denationalization
  • the process / pace / wave of denationalization
Synonyms
  • privatisation

    More common in everyday business and news contexts; denationalisation is slightly more formal and emphasises the reversal of previous government ownership

Antonyms
  • nationalisation

    The direct opposite — government takes ownership or control of a privately run industry

  • renationalisation

    Returning a previously privatised company or industry back to government ownership

Grammar Patterns

denationalization of + noun phrase

support/oppose + denationalization

Usage Note

Denationalization is an uncountable noun used primarily in formal economic and political discussion. It describes the overall process of shifting ownership from the state to the private sector, not a single transaction. The opposite process is nationalization (government takes over private industry). The verb form is denationalize; the adjective is denationalized.

Common Mistakes

The denationalization of the steel plant happened on last Tuesday.
The denationalization of the steel plant took place last Tuesday.
'Take place' or 'occur' is more natural than 'happened on' for formal economic events.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Denationalization and privatisation are near-synonyms, but denationalization stresses the reversal of previous state ownership — an industry that was once nationalized is now returned to private hands. Privatisation is the broader, more neutral term used worldwide for any transfer from public to private sector (a new state-built road sold to a private firm is privatisation, not denationalization, because it was never nationalized first). Deregulation removes government rules without changing ownership — a state-owned airline can be deregulated (allowed to set its own fares) without being sold. Liberalisation opens a market to new competitors, which may include both state and private players. Commercialisation shifts a state entity toward profit-driven behaviour without necessarily selling it. Example: 'The Thatcher government's denationalization of British Steel was part of a wider privatisation wave that also involved deregulation of financial markets.'

privatisation ↗deregulation ↗liberalisationcommercialisation ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • the denationalization of [industry]
  • a wave of denationalization
  • in favour of denationalization
  • to undergo denationalization

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Denationalization is formed by combining the prefix de- (meaning 'removal' or 'reversal,' from Latin) with nationalization (the process of bringing assets under state ownership). Nationalization itself derives from nationalize, built from nation (via Old French from Latin natio, meaning 'birth, tribe, race') and the verb suffix -ize. The word entered English economic discourse in the mid-20th century, becoming widely used during the wave of state sell-offs that began in the 1980s, particularly in the United Kingdom and other parts of Europe.