naturalize

/ˈnæt͡ʃəɹəˌlaɪz/

//ˈnæt͡ʃəɹəˌlaɪz// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"naturalize" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“naturalize” is uncommon English (frequency #91,846 among 1,534 “N” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#91,846
frequency rank, English
1,534
“N” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To grant citizenship to someone not born a citizen.

Corpus desk

Index EN-naturalize · naturalize · English

naturalize · rank #91,846 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #91,846
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,534
  • PHOTO-FINISH necropsy

Nearest frequency peer: necropsy (+3 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “naturalize”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “naturalize” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for naturalize
PropertyValue
Headwordnaturalize
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈnæt͡ʃəɹəˌlaɪz/
Letters10
Frequency rank#91,846
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “naturalize” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).naturalizefalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “necropsy” (#91,849), “neisseria” (#91,851), “nakedly” (#91,839). Among 1,534 “N” headwords, “naturalize” is #91,846. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

naturalize is uncommon English at frequency #91,846 among 1,534 “N” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /ˈnæt͡ʃəɹəˌlaɪz/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 6 senses are on record.

naturalize has no tracked misspelling variants, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French naturaliser. By surface analysis, natural + -ize. The correct English form is naturalize, spelled N-A-T-U-R-A-L-I-Z-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To grant citizenship to someone not born a citizen.
  2. 2
    To acclimatize an animal or plant.
  3. 3
    To make natural.
  4. 4
    To limit explanations of a phenomenon to naturalistic ones and exclude supernatural ones.
  5. 5
    To make (a word) a natural part of the language, using the native homologue of each phoneme (and often for each morpheme) of the imported word (e.g., native inflections).
  6. 6
    To study nature.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how naturalize appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Pakche was destroyed and five years later, Kokuryo was also swept away by T’ang and Silla. T’ang set up An-tontu-hu-fu (Government headquarters) at P’ing jang to rule the former territories of Pakche and Kokuryo. Many refugees from these destroyed states came to Japan and became naturalized as Japanese.
  2. Its wearer suggested that pears and peaches might yet be naturalized in the New England climate.

Etymology

From Middle French naturaliser. By surface analysis, natural + -ize.

Antonyms

denaturalizeexileexpatriateothersupernaturalize

This word in other languages

naturaliser(Français)einbürgern(Deutsch)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "naturalize"?
"naturalize" is spelled N-A-T-U-R-A-L-I-Z-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈnæt͡ʃəɹəˌlaɪz/.
What does "naturalize" mean?
As a verb, "naturalize" means: To grant citizenship to someone not born a citizen.
How do you pronounce "naturalize"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "naturalize" is /ˈnæt͡ʃəɹəˌlaɪz/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "naturalize"?
From Middle French naturaliser. By surface analysis, natural + -ize. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "naturalize", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

multiscale#91,831nor'easter#91,866paroxysmal#91,905mathematic#91,782

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list