Internalize

//ɪnˈtɝnəlaɪz// verb

verb ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Verb
  1. 1
    To make something internal; to incorporate it in oneself.; To process new information in one's mind. British, English, Oxford, US, transitive
  2. 2
    incorporate within oneself; make subjective or personal wordnet
  3. 3
    To make something internal; to incorporate it in oneself.; To refrain from expressing (a negative emotion), to one's psychological detriment; to bottle up. British, English, Oxford, US, transitive

    "Well, I can't get angry, okay? I mean, I have a tendency to internalize. I can't express anger. That's one of the problems I have—I grow a tumor instead."

  4. 4
    To store (a string or other structure) in a shared pool, such that subsequent items with the same value can share the same instance. British, English, Oxford, US, transitive
  5. 5
    To transfer stocks between brokers within an organization, rather than through the exchange. British, English, Oxford, US

Synonyms

All synonyms
comprisecontainembedencloseenfoldimbed

Example

More examples

"It's no good to internalize such self-degrading thoughts."

Etymology

From internal + -ize.

More for "internalize"

SynonymsSentencesPronunciationTranslate

Next best steps

Find stronger synonymsSee usage examplesCheck pronunciationBrowse writing guides

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.