Standard Lemma guide

institutionalize

verb · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˌɪnstɪˈtjuːʃənəˌlaɪz/
  • CMU ARPABET: IH2 N S T IH0 T UW1 SH AH0 N AH0 L AY2 Z Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

verb

Meaning 1

To establish as a normal practice.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To commit a person to confinement in an institution.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

cause to be admitted; of persons to an institution

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • After the second episode, she had to be committed
  • he was committed to prison

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: commit, institutionalise, send, charge

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: transfer

Narrower terms: hospitalize, hospitalise

History

Etymology

Etymology tree English institution English -al English institutional Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íďďō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō)bor. Late Latin -izōder. Middle French -iserbor. Middle English -isen English -ize English institutionalize From institutional + -ize.

Across languages

Translations

26 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: institucionalitzar — to establish as a normal practice
  • Chinese Mandarin: 體制化 /体制化 (tǐzhìhuà) — to establish as a normal practice
  • Chinese Mandarin: 制度化 (zhìdùhuà) — to establish as a normal practice
  • Danish: institutionalisere — to establish as a normal practice
  • Finnish: institutionaalistaa — to establish as a normal practice
  • Finnish: vakiinnuttaa — to establish as a normal practice
  • French: institutionnaliser — to establish as a normal practice
  • Galician: institucionalizar — to establish as a normal practice
  • German: institutionalisieren — to establish as a normal practice
  • Italian: istituzionalizzare — to establish as a normal practice
  • Kazakh: институттандыру (instituttandyru) — to establish as a normal practice
  • Lithuanian: institucionalizuoti — to establish as a normal practice
  • Polish: instytucjonalizować — to establish as a normal practice
  • Polish: zinstytucjonalizować — to establish as a normal practice
  • Portuguese: institucionalizar — to establish as a normal practice
  • Romanian: instituționaliza — to establish as a normal practice
  • Russian: институционализи́ровать (institucionalizírovatʹ) — to establish as a normal practice
  • Spanish: institucionalizar — to establish as a normal practice
  • Tagalog: isatatag — to establish as a normal practice
  • Ukrainian: інституціоналізува́ти (instytucionalizuváty) — to establish as a normal practice
  • Danish: institutionalisere — to commit a person to confinement in an institution
  • Finnish: sijoittaa laitoshoitoon — to commit a person to confinement in an institution
  • Polish: instytucjonalizować — to commit a person to confinement in an institution
  • Polish: zinstytucjonalizować — to commit a person to confinement in an institution
  • Russian: помеща́ть в учрежде́ние закры́того ти́па (pomeščátʹ v učreždénije zakrýtovo típa) — to commit a person to confinement in an institution
  • Turkish: yatırmak — to commit a person to confinement in an institution