- 1colonize something to take control of an area or a country that is not your own, especially using force, and send people from your own country to live there The area was colonized by the Vikings.
- 2colonize something (biology) (of animals or plants) to live or grow in large numbers in a particular area The slopes are colonized by flowering plants. Bats had colonized the ruins.
colonize
verbNAmE//ˈkɑləˌnaɪz//
Verb Forms present simple I / you / we / they colonize he / she / it colonizes
past simple colonized
-ing form colonizing
NAmE//ˌkɑlənəˈzeɪʃn//
noun [uncountable] the colonization of the “New World” plant colonization NAmE//ˈkɑləˌnaɪzər//
nounSee colonize in the Oxford Advanced Learner's DictionaryCheck pronunciation: colonize