revolutionize

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UK/ˌɹɛv.əˈl(j)uː.ʃəˌnaɪz/US/ˌɹɛv.əˈl(j)u.ʃəˌnaɪz/Australia/ˌɹev.əˈl(j)uː.ʃəˌnɑɪz/

verb

To radically or significantly change (something), as in a revolution.

Less commonFirst used 1799Scrabble 25Word of the Day · Jan 1, 2023

Meanings

verbrevolutionize (third-person singular simple present revolutionizes, present participle revolutionizing, simple past and past participle revolutionized)

present singular third person revolutionizes · participle present revolutionizing · participle past revolutionized · past revolutionized · alternative UK revolutionise

  1. transitiveTo radically or significantly change (something), as in a revolution.First known use 1799

    Another kind of machine learning, called neural networks, is also “revolutionizing” AI, the report said.

    2019 February 3, “UN Study: China, US, Japan Lead World AI Development”, in Voice of America, archived from the original on 07 Feb 2019
    5 more examples

    At supper my grandfather took command of the table d'hôte as though he had been at home; […] In fact, he revolutionized the whole establishment, and gave it such a rouse, that the very house reeled with it.

    1824, Geoffrey Crayon [pseudonym; Washington Irving], “The Bold Dragoon, or The Adventure of My Grandfather”, in Tales of a Traveller, part 1 (Strange Stories. […]), Philadelphia, Pa.: H[enry] C[harles] Carey & I[saac] Lea, […], →OCLC, page 63

    Teachers are not simply wage earners who teach students, but revolutionaries bringing up the future builders of socialism. For this reason, we are working hard to help teachers acquire advanced science and technology and to revolutionize and working-classize them.

    1972 May 14, Kim Il Sung, Kim Il Sung Works (Kim Il Sung Works; 27), Pyongyang, Korea: Foreign Languages Publishing House, Talk to the Delegation of the Japan National Association of Socialist Mayors, page 177

    For Joseph Schumpeter, the Austrian-born economist whose writings have acquired a special relevance in the past year or two, this most modern of economic systems “incessantly revolutionizes the economic structure from within, incessantly destroying the old one, incessantly creating a new one.”

    2010 January 22, Stephen Mihm, “Capitalist Chameleon”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 07 Jan 2017

    Researchers have developed a new gel they say is as durable as metal, has the flexibility of jello, and could revolutionize how our bodies heal and age.

    2017 July 16, Jenny Marc, Katy Scott, “Revolutionary gel is five times stronger than steel”, in CNN, archived from the original on 02 Jul 2025

    ChatGPT and reinforcement learning with human feedback (RLHF) have revolutionized the AI landscape, providing an accessible and reliable platform for AI-enabled applications.

    2023, Mohak Agarwal, Generative AI for Entrepreneurs in a Hurry, Notion Press, →ISBN

Synonyms & antonyms

verbchange radically

verbfill with revolutionary ideas

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

Translations

Bulgarian революционизирам
  • революционизирам (revoljucioniziram)to radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Catalan revolucionar
  • revolucionarto radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Chinese Mandarin 變革 /变革
  • 變革 /变革 (biàngé)to radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Danish revolutionere
  • revolutionereto radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Dutch revolutioneren
  • revolutionerento radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Finnish mullistaa
  • mullistaato radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
French révolutionner
  • révolutionnerto radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
German revolutionieren
  • revolutionierento radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Hungarian forradalmasít
  • forradalmasítto radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Italian rivoluzionare
  • rivoluzionareto radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Japanese 革命を起こす
  • 革命を起こす (kakumei wo okosu)to radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Korean 혁명을 일으키다
  • 혁명을 일으키다 (hyeongmyeong'eul ireukida)to radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Latvian revolucionizēt
  • revolucionizētto radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Polish rewolucjonizować, zrewolucjonizować
  • rewolucjonizowaćto radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
  • zrewolucjonizowaćto radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Portuguese revolucionar
  • revolucionarto radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Romanian revoluționa
  • revoluționato radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Russian революционизировать
  • революционизировать (revoljucionizirovatʹ)to radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Spanish revolucionar
  • revolucionarto radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Swedish revolutionera
  • revolutionerato radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Ukrainian революціонізува́ти
  • революціонізува́ти (revoljucionizuváty)to radically or significantly change, as in a revolution
Cite this entry
APA

revolutionize. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/revolutionize

MLA

“revolutionize.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/revolutionize. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “revolutionize,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/revolutionize.

Source: revolutionize on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.