valorize

verb

val·​o·​rize ˈva-lə-ˌrīz How to pronounce valorize (audio)
valorized; valorizing

transitive verb

1
: to enhance or try to enhance the price, value, or status of by organized and usually governmental action
using subsidies to valorize coffee
2
: to assign value or merit to : validate
valorization
ˌva-lə-rə-ˈzā-shən How to pronounce valorize (audio)
noun

Examples of valorize in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
All racial identities were named and valorized, except one. — Thomas Chatterton Williams, The Atlantic, 8 June 2026 And that was a thing that burst onto the scene and was sort of immediately politically valorized one way or the other. — Ben Smith, semafor.com, 11 May 2026 The fifty-three artists in the show are all living and working in New York (though of vastly varied origins); many of them are young, doing their best in a city that seems to valorize yet beleaguer youth. — Zoë Hopkins, New Yorker, 29 May 2026 Griffith is famous for directing the 1915 film Birth of a Nation, which valorizes the KKK. — John Ross, Vanity Fair, 8 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for valorize

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from valorization, borrowed from Portuguese valorizacão, from valorizar "to enhance the value of" (from valor "value, worth" — going back to early Medieval Latin — + -izar -ize) + -acão -ation — more at valor

First Known Use

circa 1906, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of valorize was circa 1906

Rhymes for valorize

See All Rhymes for valorize

Browse Nearby Words

valor
valorize
valorous
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Valorize.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/valorize. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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