Definition and Pronunciation
Sexualize (pronounced /ˈsɛk.ʃu.ə.laɪz/) is a verb that means to make something or someone sexual in nature, appearance, or interpretation—even when it was not originally sexual.
Easy Explanation
Sexualize means treating a person, body, behavior, or object as if it is about sex. For example, if media presents children’s clothing in a sexual way, it is called sexualizing children.
Grammatical Formation
- Part of speech: Verb
- Forms: sexualize, sexualizes, sexualized, sexualizing
- Derived from sexual + suffix -ize (to make or cause to become).
Word Comparisons
- Sexualize vs. Objectify: Sexualize means making something about sex, while objectify means treating a person as an object, often for sexual purposes.
- Sexualize vs. Sensualize: Sensualize emphasizes pleasure and the senses, while sexualize is more about turning things into sexual content or imagery.
- Sexualize vs. Eroticize: Eroticize focuses on making something erotic or arousing, while sexualize is broader and sometimes negative.
Connotations
The word often carries negative connotations, especially in contexts like media, advertising, and gender politics. It suggests reducing a person or thing to sexual meaning, sometimes inappropriately or harmfully.
Prepositional Usage
- Sexualize someone/something: to make them appear sexual.
- Sexualized as: portrayed in a sexual role (e.g., She was sexualized as a symbol of desire).
- Overly sexualize: exaggerating sexual meaning beyond context.
Real-Life Examples
- The fashion industry has been criticized for sexualizing teenagers.
- Some songs sexualize women in their lyrics.
- Advertisements often sexualize the female body to sell products.
Synonyms
eroticize, objectify, fetishize, hypersexualize, glamorize sexually
Antonyms
desexualize, neutralize, sanitize, purify
Related Terms
sexuality, objectification, fetishization, eroticization, hypersexualization
Common Collocations
overly sexualize, sexualize women, sexualize children, sexualize culture, sexualized image, sexualized body
Idiomatic/Figurative Usage
- Sexualize everything: a critique of media or culture for finding sexual meaning in almost anything.
- Sexualized gaze: looking at someone only through a sexual lens.
Sample Sentences
- The movie was criticized for sexualizing young female characters.
- She felt uncomfortable when her outfit was sexualized by strangers.
- The media tends to sexualize male athletes less than female athletes.
Connection to Sexuality
Yes, sexualize directly relates to sexuality. It describes how people, media, or culture turn individuals, identities, or even objects into symbols of sexual desire. Feminist and queer scholars often critique sexualization for reinforcing harmful stereotypes, gender roles, and unequal power dynamics. It also connects to issues of consent and exploitation, especially when applied to minors or marginalized groups. Within LGBTQ+ communities, discussions around sexualization include both reclaiming sexuality as empowerment and resisting harmful stereotypes that reduce identity to sexual acts.
Sexopedia.co is an educational glossary of sexual and gender-related terms—helping you improve your English while deepening your understanding of identity, language, and self-expression.