as in to popularize
to use so much as to make less appealing
the composer's masterpiece has been hopelessly vulgarized by its use in countless TV commercials
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of vulgarize
His versions were full-blooded, with lush strings and reasonably large orchestras — and, purists alleged — vulgarizing distortions.
—
BostonGlobe.com, 28 Oct. 2019
Ever since his rise to power, Trump has served as a vulgarizing agent.
—Leon Neyfakh, Slate Magazine, 2 June 2017
BostonGlobe.com, 28 Oct. 2019
Ever since his rise to power, Trump has served as a vulgarizing agent.
—Leon Neyfakh, Slate Magazine, 2 June 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vulgarize
Verb
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Eventually, even the activist who helped popularize the slogan in 2018 mostly abandoned it.—
Elaine Godfrey,
The Atlantic,
18 Jan. 2026
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Skype was founded in 2003 to popularize video call technology.—
Oscar Täckström,
Fortune,
3 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Symptoms such as hot flashes and mood changes are well known, and often stereotyped, but experts worldwide want to highlight that women face a huge range of changes to their bodies during the menopause – and lack of awareness means many will start experiencing symptoms without knowing why.—
Sashikala VP,
CNN Money,
4 Dec. 2025
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Among many challenges, the next president of the church will navigate how to lead a global church from its American headquarters – a church that continues to be misunderstood and stereotyped, sometimes to the point of violence.—
Brittany Romanello,
The Conversation,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Education experts and parent advocates who are concerned about schools overusing devices for instruction said the documents shed new light, in candid detail, on the business motivations behind one of the biggest technology companies marketing its products to teachers and school administrators.—
Tyler Kingkade,
NBC news,
23 Jan. 2026
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So, if the idea of culture is overused, its importance tells the path to success — or failure.—
Dave Hyde,
Sun Sentinel,
19 Jan. 2026
Verb
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If there's too much ambient light, night mode might let in too much and overexpose your photos.—
David Ferrara,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
19 Jan. 2026
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Only a few years after her 21st birthday extravaganza, Paris Hilton had been overexposed.—
Serena Turner,
Vanity Fair,
29 Dec. 2025
Verb
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The invasive beetle bores into wood and kills ash trees by eating tissues under the bark.—
Caitlin Looby,
jsonline.com,
23 Jan. 2026
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The rousing trailer finds Prince Adam bored to death hiding out at a generic corporate desk job on Earth when his precious sword is discovered, which sends him on a wild odyssey back to the land of Eternia and its talking tigers, spaceships, gothic castles, and magic swords.—
Jeff Spry,
Space.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Vulgarize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vulgarize. Accessed 27 Jan. 2026.
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