Definition

1. Verb (transitive):

   • To make crude, savage, or less civilized in behavior, speech, or culture.
   • To corrupt or debase something, such as a language, by making it crude or by introducing foreign or inferior elements.

2. Verb (intransitive):

   • To become crude, savage, or less civilized.
   • To become corrupted or debased, as in the case of a language.

Usage and Examples

• Transitive Verb (to make barbaric):
  • The brutal conditions of war can barbarise even the most civilized societies.
  • Critics argued that the simplified curriculum would barbarise the language, stripping it of its richness.
• Intransitive Verb (to become barbaric):
  • Without the rule of law, the community feared it would barbarise.
  • Some linguists worry that the language is barbarising due to excessive slang and poor education.

Advanced Usage and Notes

• The term often carries a negative, judgmental connotation, implying a decline from a perceived state of civilization or refinement.
• It is frequently used in historical, sociological, or cultural critiques.
• "to barbarise a population": Refers to the process of making a group of people less civilized, often through oppressive or brutal means.
  • The invading army sought to barbarise the population to break their spirit.

Variants and Related Words

• Barbarize: The preferred spelling in American English. The definitions and usage are identical to "barbarise" (British spelling).
• Barbarism (n): A state of being barbaric; an act or custom considered crude or savage. Also, a word or expression that violates the standard norms of a language.
• Barbaric (adj): Savagely cruel or crude.
• Barbarian (n): Historically, a member of a community or tribe perceived as uncivilized.

Synonyms

• Brutalize: To make brutal or cruel.
• Debase: To reduce in quality or value; to degrade.
• Corrupt: To cause to become morally depraved or to alter for the worse.
• Savage (verb, archaic): To attack ferociously; to make savage.

Antonyms

• Civilize: To bring to a more advanced or humane stage of social development.
• Refine: To improve by making small changes; to make more cultured or polished.
• Cultivate: To try to acquire or develop (a quality or skill); to refine.

Related Phrases and Contexts

• While not a phrasal verb, the concept is often linked to phrases like "descend into barbarism" or "a barbarising influence."
  • The collapse of the empire led to a rapid descent into barbarism.
  • The tyrant was a barbarising influence on the nation's culture.

Verb

1. make crude or savage in behavior or speech
   • his years in prison have barbarized the young man
2. become crude or savage or barbaric in behavior or language