ritualize

verb

rit·​u·​al·​ize ˈri-chə-wə-ˌlīz 

-chə-ˌlīz;

ˈrich-wə-

ritualized; ritualizing

intransitive verb

: to practice ritualism

transitive verb

1

: to make a ritual of

2

: to impose a ritual on

ritualization

ˌri-chə-wə-lə-ˈzā-shən 

-chə-lə-;

ˌrich-wə-

noun

Examples of ritualize in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Later research discovered that the children had bone markers and ritualized burial treatment suggesting they had been sacrificed, and the site became known as La Cueva de los Muertos Chiquitos, or the Cave of the Dead Children. —Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2025

Make one change toward ritualizing safety. —Sonia Singh, Rolling Stone, 3 Oct. 2025

Since the subjects aren’t greatly individualized, the film’s just-the-facts approach becomes naggingly repetitive, almost ritualized. —Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 17 May 2023

Throughout history, enslaved Romani families likely used the concept of marimé as a way to ritualize hygiene in slave quarters. —The Foretold Team, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1840, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense