1. Explain a choice or belief in a way that makes it seem reasonable, often concealing its actual motives or weaknesses.
2. Restructure activities or facilities to reduce unnecessary duplication and improve efficiency.
3. Rewrite an equivalent mathematical expression so that its denominator contains no radical expression.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- rationalize a decision
- rationalize a failure
On the page
Officials rationalized the delay as caution, although the relevant checks had already been completed.
She could rationalize each exception without recognizing the pattern they formed.
Nearby words
Related words
Word forms
- Base
- rationalize
- Past tense
- rationalized
- Past participle
- rationalized
- Present participle
- rationalizing
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- rationalize
- Present continuous
- am/is/are rationalizing
- Present perfect
- have/has rationalized
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been rationalizing
- Past
- rationalized
- Past continuous
- was/were rationalizing
- Past perfect
- had rationalized
- Past perfect continuous
- had been rationalizing
- Future
- will rationalize
- Future continuous
- will be rationalizing
- Future perfect
- will have rationalized
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been rationalizing
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
Usage notes
Primary category: academic / formal. Forms: rationalize; rationalizes; rationalized; rationalized; rationalizing Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: analysis, explanation, qualification. Disciplines: general academic writing. Commonness: moderately common. Third-person singular: rationalizes.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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