externalize
verb
ex·ter·nal·ize
ek-ˈstər-nə-ˌlīz 
externalized; externalizing
1
: to make external or externally manifest
2
: to attribute to causes outside the self : rationalize
externalized his lack of ability to succeed
Examples of externalize in a Sentence
an actress with an expressive face that wonderfully externalizes a wide range of emotions
Recent Examples on the Web
Part of that is because the costs are externalized elsewhere: Cows have been bred to produce immense volumes of milk over the last century, which has brought down the cost while taking a heavy toll on their welfare.
—
Marina Bolotnikova, Vox, 6 Mar. 2025
Efforts to externalize autocracy by circumscribing a group of good-enough democracies raises its own set of difficulties.
—Peter Slezkine, Foreign Affairs, 6 May 2022
The ecological catastrophes of unfettered industrial development demonstrate how markets, left to their own devices, routinely externalize costs onto society and future generations.
—David Faris, Newsweek, 26 Feb. 2025
The shift toward internalizing change as opposed to externalizing it is a powerful one.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes, 18 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for externalize
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Marina Bolotnikova, Vox, 6 Mar. 2025
Efforts to externalize autocracy by circumscribing a group of good-enough democracies raises its own set of difficulties.
—Peter Slezkine, Foreign Affairs, 6 May 2022
The ecological catastrophes of unfettered industrial development demonstrate how markets, left to their own devices, routinely externalize costs onto society and future generations.
—David Faris, Newsweek, 26 Feb. 2025
The shift toward internalizing change as opposed to externalizing it is a powerful one.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes, 18 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for externalize
Cite this Entry
“Externalize.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/externalize. Accessed 19 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
externalize
transitive verb
ex·ter·nal·ize
variants
or British externalise
externalized or British externalised; externalizing or British externalising
1
a
: to transform from a mental image into an apparently real object (as in hallucinations) : attribute (a mental image) to external causation
externalizing an obsession
b
: to invent an explanation for (an inner problem whose actual basis is known only subconsciously) by attributing to causes outside the self : rationalize, project
externalized his failure
2
: to direct outward socially
externalized her anger
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