commodify

Definition of commodifynext
as in to exploit
disapproving to treat (something that cannot be owned or that everyone has a right to) like a product that can be bought and sold Do we really want to commodify our water supply? I feel like our culture is being commodified.

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of commodify Or will the troves of data being amassed on nonhuman animals be used to further commodify and objectify them? David Gruber, Time, 24 Apr. 2025 Publicis and other advertising firms argue that these new AI tools makes marketing more relevant to customers and less wasteful, but regulators — particularly in Europe — remain wary of systems that commodify vast amounts of personal data. Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025 If the sole aim of a company is to profit, extraction and exploitation become the norm as businesses seek new resources to commodify. Aissa Dearing, JSTOR Daily, 9 Jan. 2025 Far from democratizing creativity, these projects frequently centralize authority and commodify the works of individual creators. Virginie Berger, Forbes, 17 Dec. 2024 See All Example Sentences for commodify
Recent Examples of Synonyms for commodify
Verb
  • With a generation warped by disappointment and frustration, the pressure is mounting to exploit any opening.
    Julian G. Waller, Foreign Affairs, 7 Aug. 2026
  • The company wants advanced cybersecurity models to strengthen digital defenses by helping security teams identify and fix vulnerabilities before malicious actors can exploit them.
    Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 7 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Whenever Rebecca can outfox him, Rupert manages to manipulate situations, which is how the Water sign aims to take control of matters.
    Lisa Stardust, PEOPLE, 5 Aug. 2026
  • Those releases were queasy, dank, almost fetid, as though Ableton could manipulate flesh as well as frequencies.
    Andrew Ryce, Pitchfork, 4 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Reports that federal immigration enforcement agencies have accessed Flock data, dozens of officers have abused the system to stalk women, and police have logged hundreds of searches related to protest activity sparked successive waves of backlash.
    N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Instead, the Children's Trust was used and abused by the Kittrells for exclusively their own purposes and in fact the Kittrells treat the trust assets for nearly all purposes as their own.
    Jay Adkisson, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • One way is to commercialize invasive species that are edible.
    ABC News, ABC News, 30 July 2026
  • Zoox’s approval caps its yearslong effort to commercialize its robotaxi under regulations developed before self-driving technology emerged.
    Reuters, NBC news, 30 July 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Commodify.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/commodify. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.

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