privatize
pri·va·tize/ˈpɹaɪvətaɪz/verb
privatize is spelled P-R-I-V-A-T-I-Z-E: 9 letters and 3 syllables (pri·va·tize). It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 49,949th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, privatize means “To release government control (of a business or industry) to private industry” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in privatize?
| Letters | 9: P-R-I-V-A-T-I-Z-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: pri·va·tize |
| In writing | about once in every 3 million words; the 49,949th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is privatize?
Privatize appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 49,949th 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 privatize?
- US /ˈpɹaɪvətaɪz/
Privatize has 3 syllables, split pri·va·tize in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-privatize.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of privatize
- privatizes present, singular, he/she/it
- privatizing participle, present
- privatized participle, past
- privatise
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does privatize mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
BritishUSTo release government control (of a business or industry) to private industry.
- 2
BritishUSTo render (a variable, etc.) private in scope.
- 3
BritishUSTo render a thought or an idea, private in scope.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Privatize in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to release government control to private industry:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | privatiser |
| German | privatisieren |
| Portuguese | privatizar |
| Spanish | privatizar, piñatizar |
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 privatize come from?
From private + -ize.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).