modernize

verb

mod·​ern·​ize ˈmä-dər-ˌnīz 

modernized; modernizing

transitive verb

: to make modern (as in taste, style, or usage)

modernize a kitchen

intransitive verb

: to adopt modern ways

Older companies need to modernize to survive in the new economy.

modernizer noun

Synonyms of modernize

• redesign
• update
• streamline
• remake

Examples of modernize in a Sentence

We're modernizing our kitchen with a new oven, refrigerator, and dishwasher.

The country recently announced plans to begin modernizing its army.

The school needs a building with modernized classrooms.

Older companies will need to modernize quickly if they are to survive in today's economy.

Recent Examples on the Web

The Louvre ticketing changes come as part of a decade-long plan to modernize the museum. —Sylvie Corbet, Fortune, 29 Nov. 2025

Recent changes to Miss Universe’s rules, while billed as modernizing, lag decades behind the times. —Oscar Holland, CNN Money, 29 Nov. 2025

Meanwhile efforts to modernize the cosmodrome have faced delays due to underfunding and geopolitical uncertainty following Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. —Brendan Cole, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Nov. 2025

Vrabel has modernized, professionalized and aggrandized the Patriots in a matter of months. —Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 27 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1716, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Rhymes for modernize

• advertise
• aggrandize
• agonize
• alibis
• alkalies
• alkalis
• amortize
• amplifies
• analyse
• analyze
• anywise
• authorize

Kids Definition

modernize

verb

mod·​ern·​ize ˈmäd-ər-ˌnīz 

modernized; modernizing

: to make or become modern

especially : to change to suit present styles, tastes, or needs

modernization

ˌmäd-ər-nə-ˈzā-shən

noun

modernizer

ˈmäd-ər-ˌnī-zər

noun