sensationalize
verb
sensationalize is spelled S-E-N-S-A-T-I-O-N-A-L-I-Z-E: 14 letters and 5 syllables. It appears about once in every 19 million words in written English, the 130,282nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, sensationalize means “To glorify or inflate the importance of a piece of news; to artificially create a sensation” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in sensationalize?
| Letters | 14: S-E-N-S-A-T-I-O-N-A-L-I-Z-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 5 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 19 million words; the 130,282nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in 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).
How common is sensationalize?
Sensationalize appears about once in every 19 million words in written English, the 130,282nd 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 sensationalize?
Sensationalize has 5 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).
Forms of sensationalize
- sensationalizes present, singular, he/she/it
- sensationalizing participle, present
- sensationalized participle, past
- sensationalise
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does sensationalize mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
BritishUSTo glorify or inflate the importance of a piece of news; to artificially create a sensation.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Sensationalize in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense Translations:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | sensationnaliser |
| German | aufbauschen, dick auftragen, dramatisieren, hochspielen, übertreiben |
| Spanish | sensacionalizar |
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 sensationalize come from?
From sensational + -ize.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).