reprivatize

verb

re·​pri·​vat·​ize (ˌ)rē-ˈprī-və-ˌtīz How to pronounce reprivatize (audio)
reprivatized; reprivatizing

transitive verb

: to make (something) private again
especially : to change (something, such as a business or industry that was previously made public) back to private control or ownership
reprivatized the banks
reprivatization noun
plural reprivatizations
… the German government's reprivatization of farmland since 1990. Ingolf Vogeler

Examples of reprivatize in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web By 1978, all but seven of the hundreds of the companies in state hands in 1973 had been reprivatized. Patrick Iber, The New Republic, 15 May 2023 The collapse of the negotiations is a blow to the government headed by former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, which needs to reprivatize the bank by April under an agreement struck with European authorities when Rome rescued the Tuscan bank in 2017. Giovanni Legorano, WSJ, 24 Oct. 2021 Rome agreed with European authorities to reprivatize the bank by April of 2022. Patricia Kowsmann, WSJ, 24 May 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'reprivatize.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1937, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of reprivatize was in 1937

Dictionary Entries Near reprivatize

Cite this Entry

“Reprivatize.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reprivatize. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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