as in to outlaw
to make or declare contrary to the law
wanted to criminalize an activity that the mountaineers had been engaging in for generations
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Recent Examples of criminalize
The new legislation aims to criminalize the therapy in the conservative and Catholic country, where activists say faith is often used to mask the practices.
—
Reuters, NBC news, 14 Oct. 2025
Actions taken by the federal government in 2025 that criminalize people experiencing homelessness, defund Housing First initiatives and dismantle Medicaid and other essential benefits threaten these partnerships and our progress.
—Sarah Stella, The Conversation, 9 Oct. 2025
Oregon’s law criminalizes making audio recordings unless all parties are notified, with some exceptions, like during conversations with on-duty law enforcement and during felonies that endanger human life.
—Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 6 Oct. 2025
The festival, taking place in Riyadh from September 26 to October 9, has been widely condemned as an attempt to whitewash the Saudi regime, which heavily criminalizes LGBTQ+ people and has ordered the killing of journalists like Jamal Khashoggi.
—Samantha Riedel, Them., 6 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for criminalize
Reuters, NBC news, 14 Oct. 2025
Actions taken by the federal government in 2025 that criminalize people experiencing homelessness, defund Housing First initiatives and dismantle Medicaid and other essential benefits threaten these partnerships and our progress.
—Sarah Stella, The Conversation, 9 Oct. 2025
Oregon’s law criminalizes making audio recordings unless all parties are notified, with some exceptions, like during conversations with on-duty law enforcement and during felonies that endanger human life.
—Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 6 Oct. 2025
The festival, taking place in Riyadh from September 26 to October 9, has been widely condemned as an attempt to whitewash the Saudi regime, which heavily criminalizes LGBTQ+ people and has ordered the killing of journalists like Jamal Khashoggi.
—Samantha Riedel, Them., 6 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for criminalize
Recent Examples of Synonyms for criminalize
Verb
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Courts undid Nixon’s actions, and Congress eventually passed the Impoundment Control Act of 1974, which outlawed the maneuver, leaving only narrow exceptions — rescissions — that required congressional sign-off.—
Andy Kroll,
ProPublica,
18 Oct. 2025
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Courts undid Nixon’s actions, and Congress eventually passed the Impoundment Control Act of 1974, which outlawed the maneuver, leaving only narrow exceptions—rescissions—that required congressional sign-off.—
Andy Kroll,
New Yorker,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Trump has issued orders seeking to ban the use of mail ballots or at least the counting of those cast by Election Day but received afterward — a common practice in both Democratic and Republican states.—
Michael Smolens,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
19 Oct. 2025
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The tush push has been a constant story this season after the play fell just short of receiving the necessary votes in the offseason to ban it.—
Saad Yousuf,
New York Times,
19 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Criminalize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/criminalize. Accessed 22 Oct. 2025.
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