as in manifestation
a visible representation of something abstract (as a quality)
bizarre paintings that are the externalization of a very troubled psyche
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Recent Examples of externalization
If a company dumps toxic waste into a local river and your children get sick and die, there is no value lost, there are no damages, no liability—the ultimate rationale for Milton Friedman’s externalization of costs.
—
Andrew Behar, Fortune, 1 Apr. 2026
Art is an externalization of our imagination and need to express ourselves.
—Roger Sands, Forbes.com, 23 May 2025
Virtuoso delivers accurate externalization and localization of sound, ensuring mix decisions translate well to loudspeakers.
—Mark Sparrow, Forbes, 6 Dec. 2024
But this depiction of public shaming feels like a paranoid fantasy, an externalization of May’s guilt, rather than a believable development.
—Katy Waldman, The New Yorker, 19 Aug. 2024
Interludes in which the accusing faces of prisoners silently fill the frame act as a sort of externalization of his survivor’s guilt.
—Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 2 May 2024
Andrew Behar, Fortune, 1 Apr. 2026
Art is an externalization of our imagination and need to express ourselves.
—Roger Sands, Forbes.com, 23 May 2025
Virtuoso delivers accurate externalization and localization of sound, ensuring mix decisions translate well to loudspeakers.
—Mark Sparrow, Forbes, 6 Dec. 2024
But this depiction of public shaming feels like a paranoid fantasy, an externalization of May’s guilt, rather than a believable development.
—Katy Waldman, The New Yorker, 19 Aug. 2024
Interludes in which the accusing faces of prisoners silently fill the frame act as a sort of externalization of his survivor’s guilt.
—Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 2 May 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for externalization
Noun
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Call it manifestation, call it delusion (lovingly), call it a coping mechanism for ambition, but dressing for your future self is quietly becoming one of the most powerful styling frameworks of this moment.—
Essence,
Essence,
1 Apr. 2026
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For more of the science behind optimism and manifestation, listen to this episode of NPR's Life Kit.—
Brittney Melton,
NPR,
31 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The images of that crash were shared widely online and caught Noah Williams' attention, triggering painful memories and taking him back to the day his own life changed forever.—
Karen Morfitt,
CBS News,
4 Apr. 2026
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Iranian officials told civilians to be on the lookout for survivors and have flooded social media with images that purport to show wreckage from the aircraft.—
Janet Loehrke,
USA Today,
4 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Externalization.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/externalization. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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