revolutionize

verb

rev·​o·​lu·​tion·​ize ˌre-və-ˈlü-shə-ˌnīz 

revolutionized; revolutionizing

transitive verb

1

: to overthrow the established government of

2

: to imbue with revolutionary doctrines

3

: to change fundamentally or completely

revolutionize an industry

intransitive verb

: to engage in revolution

revolutionizer noun

Examples of revolutionize in a Sentence

The invention of the airplane revolutionized travel.

This new drug may revolutionize cancer treatment.

This discovery has revolutionized our understanding of how the human brain works.

Recent Examples on the Web

We were inspired from how many great discoveries that went on to revolutionize science and medicine came about from looking around in nature and finding these odd things—PCR [polymerase chain reaction] tests, for example, or CRISPR. — Adam Kovac, Scientific American, 14 Oct. 2026

Critics of the law view it as a relic that plaintiffs' lawyers are trying to exploit in a way that Congress could not have anticipated before the internet revolutionized commerce. — ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026

The indie film became a horror classic, and helped revolutionize the slasher genre. — Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 13 Oct. 2026

Holmes, the founder of Theranos, a Silicon Valley startup that purported to revolutionize blood testing, was convicted of four counts of fraud in 2022 and sentenced to more than eleven years in prison. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

revolution + -ize

First Known Use

1797, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for revolutionize

• contextualize
• industrialize
• materialise
• materialize
• memorialize
• microenterprise
• overemphasize
• particularize
• revolutionise
• actualize
• antagonize
• apologise

Kids Definition

revolutionize

verb

rev·​o·​lu·​tion·​ize ˌrev-ə-ˈlü-shə-ˌnīz 

revolutionized; revolutionizing

1

: to overthrow the established government of

2

: to cause a person to become a revolutionist

3

: to change greatly or completely

an invention that revolutionized the industry

revolutionizer noun