Definition

Verb: 1. To represent something according to a conventional, simplified, or stylized style, rather than in a realistic or naturalistic way. 2. To make something conventional or to adapt it to widely accepted customs, rules, or styles.

Usage and Examples

• Verb (Meaning 1: Stylize):
  • The artist chose to conventionalize the flowers, drawing them as simple geometric shapes instead of trying to capture their natural complexity.
  • Many ancient cultures conventionalized animal forms in their art and hieroglyphs.
• Verb (Meaning 2: Make Conventional):
  • Over time, the radical ideas of the movement became conventionalized and lost their original power.
  • The ceremony has been conventionalized to the point where its original meaning is obscure.

Advanced Usage

• "to conventionalize something into something": To adapt or stylize something into a specific conventional form.
  • The designer conventionalized the company's complex history into a simple, elegant logo.

Variants and Related Words

• Conventionalization (noun): The process or result of making something conventional or stylized.
  • The conventionalization of the symbol made it easier to reproduce.
• Conventionalized (adjective): Describing something that has been made conventional or stylized.
  • The tapestry featured conventionalized images of birds and vines.
• Stylize (verb): A close synonym for the first meaning, meaning to depict in a non-realistic, designed style.

Synonyms

• Stylize: To design or represent in a specific, often non-naturalistic style.
• Standardize: To make something conform to a standard.
• Formalize: To give a definite structure or form to something, often by following established rules.

Different Meanings

The two core meanings are related but distinct: 1. Art/Style Focus: Pertains to visual or artistic representation, moving away from realism toward simplification or symbolic form. 2. Behavior/Custom Focus: Pertains to social practices, ideas, or behaviors, describing the process by which they become mainstream or lose their unique character by adhering to norms.

Verb

1. represent according to a conventional style
   • a stylized female head
2. make conventional or adapt to conventions
   • conventionalized behavior