commercialize

verb

com·​mer·​cial·​ize kə-ˈmər-shə-ˌlīz 

commercialized; commercializing

transitive verb

1

a

: to manage on a business basis for profit

b

: to develop commerce in

2

: to exploit for profit

commercialize Christmas

3

: to debase in quality for more profit

commercialization

kə-ˌmər-sh(ə-)lə-ˈzā-shən 

noun

Examples of commercialize in a Sentence

The company hopes to commercialize the drug next year.

Recent Examples on the Web

The future value of intellectual property may increasingly depend not only on what an organization has already invented but also on its proprietary capacity to generate, validate and commercialize future discoveries. — Joseph K. Hopkins, Forbes.com, 12 Nov. 2026

Thea Energy was spun out of Princeton University and Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory in 2022 to commercialize its stellarator technology. — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 5 Nov. 2026

Some of the creators behind Hopcopter are currently working on commercializing the technology. — Maryna Holovnova, New Atlas, 4 Nov. 2026

Teeth whitening products have been commercialized for decades. — Michelle Lee, PEOPLE, 2 Nov. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1830, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for commercialize

• actualize
• antagonize
• apologise
• apologize
• capitalize
• categorize
• characterize
• conceptualize
• contrariwise
• criminalize
• decentralize
• democratize

Kids Definition

commercialize

verb

com·​mer·​cial·​ize kə-ˈmər-shə-ˌlīz 

commercialized; commercializing

1

: to manage for the sake of making a profit

2

: to use for profit

commercialize Christmas

commercialization

-ˌmər-shə-lə-ˈzā-shən 

noun