privatize
verb
pri·vat·ize
ˈprī-və-ˌtīz 
privatized; privatizing; privatizes
: to make private
especially
: to change from public to private control or ownership
privatize an industry
The mayor's threat to privatize trash collection shook things up. —
Jeff Bailey
Jeff Bailey Examples of privatize in a Sentence
The city decided to privatize the municipal power company.
a proposal to privatize the health-care system
Recent Examples on the Web
On social media and in council meetings, residents have decried the initiative to privatize as a bad-faith effort to control the library system.
—Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 10 May 2024
For the district’s House position A seat, incumbent Rep. Steve Berch, a vocal critic of privatizing education, runs uncontested in the Democratic primary.
—Hayat Norimine, Idaho Statesman, 10 May 2024
Dominicans had been using it since the days of slavery, but the American couple tried to unofficially privatize it.
—Nina Burleigh, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 May 2024
After Franks argued that the country’s wider economic growth and its fiscal woes are linked, Hamadeh brought up a comment Masters made while running for Senate about privatizing Social Security.
—Laura Gersony, The Arizona Republic, 2 May 2024
These days, Balkan consults with businesses and governments looking to reduce waste, often by introducing pay-as-you-throw regimes or privatizing the collection of residential waste.
—Eric Lach, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
What Masters did do in the forum, however, was create a brushfire for himself in an answer announcing support for privatizing Social Security.
—Ronald J. Hansen, The Arizona Republic, 7 Mar. 2024
By the late 1980s, the Norwegian government had decided to privatize production in the Arctic Circle town.
—Ana Swanson Thomas Ekström, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2024
The traditional rationale for privatizing American war-making is that corporate warriors can do the job for less.
—Elizabeth Barber, Harper's Magazine, 2 Feb. 2024
Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 10 May 2024
For the district’s House position A seat, incumbent Rep. Steve Berch, a vocal critic of privatizing education, runs uncontested in the Democratic primary.
—Hayat Norimine, Idaho Statesman, 10 May 2024
Dominicans had been using it since the days of slavery, but the American couple tried to unofficially privatize it.
—Nina Burleigh, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 May 2024
After Franks argued that the country’s wider economic growth and its fiscal woes are linked, Hamadeh brought up a comment Masters made while running for Senate about privatizing Social Security.
—Laura Gersony, The Arizona Republic, 2 May 2024
These days, Balkan consults with businesses and governments looking to reduce waste, often by introducing pay-as-you-throw regimes or privatizing the collection of residential waste.
—Eric Lach, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
What Masters did do in the forum, however, was create a brushfire for himself in an answer announcing support for privatizing Social Security.
—Ronald J. Hansen, The Arizona Republic, 7 Mar. 2024
By the late 1980s, the Norwegian government had decided to privatize production in the Arctic Circle town.
—Ana Swanson Thomas Ekström, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2024
The traditional rationale for privatizing American war-making is that corporate warriors can do the job for less.
—Elizabeth Barber, Harper's Magazine, 2 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'privatize.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near privatize
Cite this Entry
“Privatize.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/privatize. Accessed 14 May. 2024.
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privatize
transitive verb
pri·va·tize
ˈprī-və-ˌtīz
privatized; privatizing
: to make private
especially
: to change (as a business or industry) from public to private control or ownership
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