militarize

verb

mil·​i·​ta·​rize ˈmi-lə-tə-ˌrīz 

militarized; militarizing

transitive verb

1

: to give a military character to

militarize a country's foreign policy

2

: to equip with military forces and defenses

The area is now fully militarized.

a militarized zone

3

: to adapt for military use

militarization

ˌmi-lə-t(ə-)rə-ˈzā-shən 

noun

Examples of militarize in a Sentence

militarize a country's foreign policy

Recent Examples on the Web

Iran had also not yet indicated any plans to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a vital corridor for global energy trade that has been militarized by Iran since the start of the war. —Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 10 Apr. 2026

China fired warning flares at Philippine coast guard aircraft Thursday, the latest confrontation as Beijing militarizes artificial islands to expand its control over the contested waterway. —Jim Gomez, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026

Iran’s government, now more hard-line and militarized than ever, will remain in power. —Sudarsan Raghavan, New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2026

According to international humanitarian law, medical personnel and facilities should never be attacked or militarized. —Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 23 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1856, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for militarize

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

Kids Definition

militarize

verb

mil·​i·​ta·​rize ˈmil-ə-tə-ˌrīz 

militarized; militarizing

1

: to equip with military forces and defenses

2

: to give a military character to

militarization

ˌmil-ə-t(ə-)rə-ˈzā-shən 

noun