globalization

noun

glob·​al·​i·​za·​tion ˌglō-bə-lə-ˈzā-shən 

: the act or process of globalizing : the state of being globalized

especially : the development of an increasingly integrated global economy marked especially by free trade, free flow of capital, and the tapping of cheaper foreign labor markets

Globalization brought with it elongated supply chains, as manufacturing and production were moved across oceans and continents.

—Mary Hui

Much of globalization's appeal came from the cheap labor offered in manufacturing hubs like China and Vietnam. Companies moved production abroad, and lower labor costs kept prices low for all kinds of goods.

—Ben Winck

Free-trade proponents argue there are always winners and losers in globalization, but overall, gains outweigh losses. … That "everyone's better off" argument, though, rang hollow among Rust Belt workers left behind in globalization …

—Kristina Johnson and Samuel Fromartz

Examples of globalization in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The United States has outcompeted the EU in recent decades, in part because legacy American companies have responded better to digitization, globalization, and other twenty-first-century changes and disruptions. — Andrew McAfee, Foreign Affairs, 23 Sep. 2026

China has also made globalization a key goal for pharmaceutical and biotech companies under its 15th five-year plan, Nomura noted. — Jenny Lee, CNBC, 21 Sep. 2026

More people participated in demonstrations than in 2003 (against the invasion of Iraq) or 1999 (against globalization) or 1968 (against the Vietnam War, for civil rights, and so on). — Rachel Nolan, The New York Review of Books, 19 Sep. 2026

Al-Qaeda arose at the confluence of post-Cold War globalization and unipolar violence. — Faisal Devji, Time, 11 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

see globe entry 1

First Known Use

1930, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing globalization

• anti-globalization

Rhymes for globalization

• abbreviation
• abomination
• acceleration
• accentuation
• accommodation
• accreditation
• acculturation
• accumulation
• acetylation
• adjudication
• administration
• adulteration