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Definitions

urbanize

[ur-buh-nahyz] / ˈɜr bəˌnaɪz /
VERB
citify
Synonyms


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Emerging markets over the longterm will continue to urbanize along with rising incomes.

From Barron's Apr. 14, 2026

It was such an incredible moment to mobilize the whole country to urbanize.

From The Wall Street Journal Apr. 10, 2026

Many cities have pushed back, arguing that so many more homes will more rapidly urbanize their suburban communities.

From Los Angeles Times Aug. 9, 2024

"Canada continues to urbanize as large urban centers benefit most from new arrivals to the country," Statscan said.

From Reuters Feb. 9, 2022

In this way little effort is required of the city in order to steal more farmland and urbanize it.

From Down with the Cities by Nakashima, Tadashi

“It’s a street that’s stuck in time” and that’s just now waking up as Burien urbanizes, said Councilmember Jimmy Matta, who lives near Chelsea Park.

From Seattle Times Jun. 10, 2023

As Nigeria urbanizes, children’s help is not needed in fields; the extended families have broken down.

From New York Times Apr. 14, 2012

The U.S. had evolved from a predominantly agrarian to an urbanized, industrial society, and its institutions needed to evolve as well.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 4, 2026

Their society was highly organized, urbanized, and supported by advanced agricultural techniques tailored to local conditions.

From Science Daily Apr. 27, 2026

The island’s cities are dense and highly urbanized, making it easy for small stores to capture heavy foot traffic.

From Barron's Mar. 21, 2026

That research has shed light on existential threats facing the big cats eking out an existence in an increasingly urbanized landscape.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 10, 2025

In the main, this delicately balanced state of affairs has not greatly altered since the Civil War, save in those parts of the South which have been industrialized or urbanized.

From "Native Son" by Richard Wright

By 1850, more than 8% of the population lived in a top-20 city, driven largely by the urbanizing Northeast.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 1, 2026

The research found that WUI areas are expanding worldwide, especially in rapidly urbanizing regions in Africa.

From Science Daily Apr. 16, 2024

The losses, mostly driven by habitat destruction on the rapidly urbanizing continent, could prove catastrophic to ecosystem health.

From National Geographic Jan. 4, 2024

It reverberates in the bustle and thrum of the continent’s ballooning cities, their hectic streets jammed with new arrivals, that make Africa the most rapidly urbanizing continent on earth.

From Seattle Times Oct. 29, 2023

Of particular Basinwide interest will be the results of the application of Soil Conservation Service watershed programs in controlling erosion in urbanizing stream basins in the Washington metropolitan area, and the lessons learned therefrom.

From The Nation's River A report on the Potomac from the U.S. Department of the Interior by United States. Dept. of the Interior.




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