as in to outlaw
to make or declare contrary to the law
wanted to criminalize an activity that the mountaineers had been engaging in for generations
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Recent Examples of criminalize
Contact your state representatives and demand that Connecticut criminalize FGM/C.
—
Sydney Iannantuono, Hartford Courant, 21 Apr. 2025
By criminalizing ecocide, the alliance seeks to deter large-scale environmental damage and promote global environmental justice.
—Catarina Rolfsdotter-Jansson, Forbes.com, 17 Apr. 2025
India criminalizes most cannabis products but makes a unique exception for bhang, an edible made from cannabis leaves.
—Tribune Content Agency, Mercury News, 6 May 2025
This dynamic has created a cruel catch-22 which forces an impossible choice: register and risk immediate deportation, or refuse and become criminalized for noncompliance, destroying any path to legal status.
—Kica Matos, Time, 2 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for criminalize
Sydney Iannantuono, Hartford Courant, 21 Apr. 2025
By criminalizing ecocide, the alliance seeks to deter large-scale environmental damage and promote global environmental justice.
—Catarina Rolfsdotter-Jansson, Forbes.com, 17 Apr. 2025
India criminalizes most cannabis products but makes a unique exception for bhang, an edible made from cannabis leaves.
—Tribune Content Agency, Mercury News, 6 May 2025
This dynamic has created a cruel catch-22 which forces an impossible choice: register and risk immediate deportation, or refuse and become criminalized for noncompliance, destroying any path to legal status.
—Kica Matos, Time, 2 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for criminalize
Recent Examples of Synonyms for criminalize
Verb
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The 1956 Federal-Aid Highway Act, passed just two years after Brown v. Board of Education outlawed segregation in public schools, laid the groundwork for the physical reshaping of American cities.—
Deborah N. Archer,
Time,
21 May 2025
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But in times of war or imminent military threat, government protects the rights of peaceful people by outlawing trade that aids and abets the threat of an aggressive foreign government.—
Ben Bayer,
Oc Register,
19 May 2025
Verb
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At the state level, Republicans seized upon the policy change to gin up support for a past policy that would have banned trans girls from school sports.—
Lia Russell,
Sacbee.com,
27 May 2025
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Words like social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion have been all but banned at most Fortune 500 companies.—
Jennifer Lotito,
Forbes.com,
27 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Criminalize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/criminalize. Accessed 1 Jun. 2025.
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