nationalize

/ˈnæʃnəlaɪz/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈnæʃnəlaɪz/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈna-sh(ə-)nə-ˌlīz/ (ame, mw)

nationalize — verb

  • nationalizepresent simple I / you / we / they
  • nationalizeshe / she / it
  • nationalizedpast simple
  • nationalizing-ing form

1. to make a private company, bank, or industry belong to the state, so the governm

1.動詞及物C1
釋義

to make a private company, bank, or industry belong to the state, so the government rather than private owners runs it

例句

After the coup, the army leader nationalized the country's two largest banks.

nationalize + bank/company/industry

The new president promised to nationalize the railways within her first year.

nationalize + railway/service

同義詞
  • take into public ownership

    plainer wording for the same government takeover process

  • expropriate

    stronger and often more negative; emphasizes forced seizure of property

  • socialize

    used in political writing, often with a broader ideological meaning

反義詞
  • privatize

    to move a company or service from state ownership to private ownership

  • denationalize

    to reverse an earlier nationalization

文法句型

nationalize [bank/company/industry]

nationalize [sector/service]

用法筆記

This sense is common in news and history writing about governments taking private property or services into public ownership. It usually refers to banks, railways, oil companies, mines, utilities, or other major industries.

常見錯誤

❌The government nationalized to the company last year.
✅The government nationalized the company last year.
💡nationalize is transitive and takes a direct object.
❌The state nationalized the company to private owners.
✅The state nationalized the company from private owners.
💡after nationalization, ownership moves away from private owners and into state hands.

2. to spread something across a whole country or shape it so it represents the nati

2.動詞及物C2
釋義

to spread something across a whole country or shape it so it represents the nation rather than only one region

例句

The reform nationalized the school curriculum, replacing dozens of regional textbooks.

nationalize + system/curriculum

Leaders wanted to nationalize the museum system so every province used one plan.

同義詞
反義詞
  • regionalize

    to divide something into regional systems instead of one national one

  • localize

    to keep something shaped by local needs rather than one national pattern

文法句型

nationalize [system/curriculum/holiday]

nationalize [records/coverage/programme]

用法筆記

This meaning is much rarer than the state-ownership sense. It is used when a policy, system, event, or style is expanded from a local or regional level so it becomes national in reach or character.

常見錯誤

❌The festival nationalized last summer.
✅The government nationalized the festival last summer.
💡this sense is normally used transitively with an object.
❌The reform nationalized the curriculum into local rules.
✅The reform nationalized the curriculum and removed local rules.
💡nationalize here means making something nationwide, not more local.