as in sanctioning
to make (something) legal
They wanted to legalize gambling in their city.
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Recent Examples of legalizing
The city of Sacramento took its next step toward legalizing cannabis consumption lounges as a part of a five-year pilot program, but local tokers won’t be able to visit such a space for a while.
—
Jennah Pendleton,
Sacbee.com,
24 June 2026
Continue reading … SAFE SPACES — Minneapolis city council hear arguments in favor of legalizing adult bathhouses for LGBTQ community.
—
FOXNews.com,
19 June 2026
In exchange for legalizing sports betting, Colorado voters agreed that sportsbooks should be taxed at a 10% rate to fund water conservation.
—
Noelle Phillips,
Denver Post,
18 June 2026
Separately, the administration swiped $35 million allocated to needy children and drug prevention to pay for efforts to kill that amendment and another legalizing marijuana.
—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
6 June 2026
The majority of Montanans support legalizing corner crossing, highlighting the need for resolution.
—
Andrew McKean,
Outdoor Life,
4 June 2026
The governor’s original proposal included several other ideas, such as legalizing more single-stair apartment buildings rather than requiring two or more staircases, that had not received any committee votes as of Friday, with just a couple of days left in the legislative session.
—
Jeremy Gorner,
Chicago Tribune,
30 May 2026
The Georgia Legislature roundly rejected a bill legalizing sports betting, but sports betting companies aren’t letting up.
—
Aj Willingham,
AJC.com,
15 May 2026
When Congress passed the 2018 Farm Bill, legalizing hemp, Gordon found an additional path for the farm.
—
William Deffaa,
Baltimore Sun,
14 May 2026
Jennah Pendleton,
Sacbee.com,
24 June 2026
Continue reading … SAFE SPACES — Minneapolis city council hear arguments in favor of legalizing adult bathhouses for LGBTQ community.
—
FOXNews.com,
19 June 2026
In exchange for legalizing sports betting, Colorado voters agreed that sportsbooks should be taxed at a 10% rate to fund water conservation.
—
Noelle Phillips,
Denver Post,
18 June 2026
Separately, the administration swiped $35 million allocated to needy children and drug prevention to pay for efforts to kill that amendment and another legalizing marijuana.
—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
6 June 2026
The majority of Montanans support legalizing corner crossing, highlighting the need for resolution.
—
Andrew McKean,
Outdoor Life,
4 June 2026
The governor’s original proposal included several other ideas, such as legalizing more single-stair apartment buildings rather than requiring two or more staircases, that had not received any committee votes as of Friday, with just a couple of days left in the legislative session.
—
Jeremy Gorner,
Chicago Tribune,
30 May 2026
The Georgia Legislature roundly rejected a bill legalizing sports betting, but sports betting companies aren’t letting up.
—
Aj Willingham,
AJC.com,
15 May 2026
When Congress passed the 2018 Farm Bill, legalizing hemp, Gordon found an additional path for the farm.
—
William Deffaa,
Baltimore Sun,
14 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for legalizing
Verb
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Big 12 administrators also met to consider sanctioning Texas Tech or Sorsby.
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The Oklahoma attorney general’s letter rejected the idea that the Big 12 sanctioning Texas Tech would represent antitrust violations.
Verb
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Schlittler did allow some traffic before things unraveled in the fifth, permitting a walk and a single to start the inning.
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Fixing The Permitting Problem The first barrier states need to address is permitting.
Verb
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The closest possible comparison could be the past three UEFA European Championships that’s used a system allowing four of six third-place finishers to move on.
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Superior Court Judge Lawrence Riff sided with attorneys for the plaintiffs, allowing the first tranche of payouts to move forward.
Verb
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Senators later adopted Amendment 1 before approving the bill.
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Finland’s parliament on Wednesday voted to lift a decades-old ban on nuclear weapons, approving a major defense policy shift aimed at aligning the country more closely with North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) deterrence strategy.
Verb
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The deal marks the first time Sony has appointed an external licensing agency to develop a global licensing program for the franchise.
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Briggs said the measure is designed to eventually pay for itself by requiring institutions receiving initiative funding to return 10% of revenue generated from licensing therapies to the state.
Verb
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Drones offer a potential alternative cover crop seeding method by enabling interseeding of cover crops, the practice of planting one crop into another crop before harvest.
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Built around a three-dimensional architecture, the technology is designed to improve flexibility while reducing weight and enabling more uniform current distribution.
Cite this Entry
“Legalizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/legalizing. Accessed 30 Jun. 2026.
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