topicalize

T1O1P3I1C3A1L1I1Z10E1

verb

To place the topic of a sentence at the beginning.

OriginEnglish topical ← Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.? →
Scrabble 23
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Meanings

verbtopicalize (third-person singular simple present topicalizes, present participle topicalizing, simple past and past participle topicalized)

present singular third person topicalizes · participle present topicalizing · participle past topicalized · past topicalized · alternative topicalise

  1. grammarTo place the topic of a sentence at the beginning.
  2. human sciencesTo treat (a subject) as a topic.

    […] during the whole media debate the alternative point of view and the perspective and rights of the minority groups themselves were hardly, if at all, topicalized.

    2013, Teun A. van Dijk, News Analysis, page 203

Origin

  1. Englishtopic
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₂el-
  3. Proto-Indo-European*h₂élisder.?
  4. Englishtopical
  5. Englishtopicalize

From topical + -ize.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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