socialize

Etymology

It is formed from English social + -ize.^[2][3][4][5] Merriam-Webster takes only the first sense this way, and the others as a back-formation from socialization.^[6] The OED compares French socialiser, which meant to make suitable for society from 1781 and to make socialist or collective from 1831.^[2] Social is from French social and Latin sociālis (“of companionship, of allies”), from socius (“companion, ally”).^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

To court or desire a state or quality, a rare poetic use: 1743, in A. Hill's Fanciad, obsolete after 1771.^[2] The surviving sense, to make someone fit for society, is recorded from 1765.^[2] Etymonline dates "to render social" to 1799,^[5] Merriam-Webster to 1810,^[6] and the Shorter Oxford to the early 19th century.^[3]

Semantic evolution

The sense "to civilize, make fit for society" is now used chiefly in the social sciences, for instilling a society's values and norms in a person.^[2][3][6] The political sense, to make socialist or to bring under public ownership, is first found in Worcester's dictionary of 1846,^[2][5] and socialized medicine is attested by 1912.^[5] The intransitive sense, to be sociable and mix with others, is recorded from 1841,^[2] though Etymonline dates it to 1895.^[5] Collins marks the political sense as chiefly American.^[7]

Timeline

• 1743 – to court or desire a state or quality (obsolete by 1771).^[2]
• 1765 – to civilize, make fit for society.^[2]
• 1841 – to be sociable, to mix socially.^[2]
• 1846 – to make socialist; to bring under public ownership.^[2][5]
• 1912 – socialized medicine.^[5]

Meanings

Verb

1. To take part in social activities; to mix with other people in a friendly way: They often socialize with their neighbours at weekends.^[7][6][2]
2. To train a person, especially a child, to fit into a society or group by learning its norms and values.^[7][6][2]
3. To organize something according to the principles of socialism, or to bring it under public or state ownership (chiefly US).^[7][6][2]

Word family

• socialization
• socializer
• socializable
• desocialize
• oversocialize
• resocialize
• unsocialized

Related words

• social
• socialism
• society
• sociable

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
4. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
5. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
6. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
7. ^ a b c d Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins