customize
/ˈkʌs.tə.maɪ̯z/verb
customize is spelled C-U-S-T-O-M-I-Z-E: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.9 times per million words in written English, the 20,356th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “customise vs customize” about 30 times a month (Google, United States). As a verb, customize means “To build or alter according to personal preferences or specifications” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in customize?
| Letters | 9: C-U-S-T-O-M-I-Z-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.9 times per million words; the 20,356th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How common is customize?
Customize appears 1.9 times per million words in written English, the 20,356th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce customize?
- US /ˈkʌs.tə.maɪ̯z/
- Australia /ˈkas.tə.mɑɪ̯z/
- /ˈkas.tə.maɪ̯z/
Customize has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-customize.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with customize
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Also written: customise.
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of customize
- customizes present, singular, he/she/it
- customizing participle, present
- customized participle, past
- customise UK
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does customize mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To build or alter according to personal preferences or specifications.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Customize in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense alter according to preferences:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | personnaliser |
| German | speziell anfertigen, personalisieren, anpassen |
| Portuguese | personalizar, customizar |
| Spanish | entallar, customizar, confeccionar a la medida, costumizar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does customize come from?
From custom + -ize. First attested in 1934 in American English.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).