synthesize

verb syn·the·size \ ˈsin(t)-thə-ˌsīz \

|Updated on: 11 Aug 2018

Examples: synthesize in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of synthesize

synthesized; synthesizing

transitive verb

1 : to combine or produce by synthesis

2 : to make a synthesis of

3 : to produce (something, such as music) by an electronic synthesizer

intransitive verb

: to make a synthesis

See synthesize defined for English-language learners

See synthesize defined for kids

Examples of synthesize in a Sentence

She synthesized the treatment from traditional and modern philosophies of medicine.
He synthesized old and new ideas to form his theory.
Amino acid is synthesized in the body.

Recent Examples of synthesize from the Web

Made from ceramics to withstand high operating temperatures, the cell can synthesize ammonia at record rates—about 500 times faster than MacFarlane's fuel cell.

— robert f. service, Science | AAAS, "Ammonia—a renewable fuel made from sun, air, and water—could power the globe without carbon," 12 July 2018
Software by Palantir can synthesize disparate data sets—social media feeds, federal crime databases, foreclosure lists—to create detailed profiles of people designed to enable faster crime fighting.

— gregory barber, WIRED, "Crime Fighting Gets High-Tech Advances," 3 June 2018
The singer’s rendition of the song trades the iconic synthesized drums from the original for a smoother, sexier 808 beat, with synthesizers and light pianos making up the rest of the cover’s euphoric sound.

— stephen daw, Billboard, "Bronze Avery Isn't Trying to Rick Roll You With His Sensual Cover of 'Never Gonna Give You Up': Exclusive," 30 May 2018
In 1950 he and an associate synthesized a compound commercially known as Miltown, which turned vicious monkeys into calm, friendly, and alert ones.

— daniel horowitz, BostonGlobe.com, "In the worst human traumas, psychologists found the roots of happiness," 6 May 2018
These possibilities are close to becoming real thanks to technology that uses digital genetic code to chemically synthesize DNA strands overnight—essentially printing out biological material on demand.

— laine higgins, WSJ, "This Company Aims to Deliver DNA on Demand With Its Biological Fax Machine," 12 July 2018
Gene synthesis 1970: Biochemistry professor Har Gobind Khorana becomes the first person to chemically synthesize a gene.

— mark johnson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "UW scientific advances include vitamins, growing human embryonic stem cells in lab," 12 July 2018
Earlier this year, a team at the University of Lincoln successfully synthesized a new class of antibiotic capable of dealing with some of the superbugs that are beginning to develop around the world.

— jason daley, Smithsonian, "New “Immunobiotic” Could Treat Antibiotic-Resistant Superbugs," 6 July 2018
Searching for a substitute has been an ongoing effort spanning decades, and in 2016, ARL synthesized a compound with some promising results.

— jay bennett, Popular Mechanics, "So Long TNT, There's a New Explosive in Town," 2 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'synthesize.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

Synthesize is a very common word in chemistry, since chemists are constantly synthesizing new compounds—that is, synthetic compounds—including drugs and industrial chemicals. It's also often used when talking about writing; nonfiction writers must often synthesize large amounts of material from many sources to produce a book—which represents a synthesis of the important materials. An electronic synthesizercreates new sounds (which may imitate the sounds of acoustic instruments) by generating different basic tones and then manipulating and merging them together with others.