Definition

1. Verb:
   • To make external or objective, or give reality to: To express or manifest something internal (like thoughts, feelings, or abstract concepts) in an external, tangible, or objective form.
   • To bring outside the body for surgery, of organs: In a medical/surgical context, to bring an internal organ to the outside of the body for examination or operation.

Usage Examples

• Verb (General Use):
  • Art can be a way to exteriorize complex emotions that are difficult to articulate.
  • The architect's model helped to exteriorize the team's vision for the new building.
• Verb (Medical Use):
  • The surgeon needed to exteriorize a section of the intestine to perform the delicate procedure.

Advanced Usage

• In Psychology/Philosophy: The term is often used to describe the process of making internal mental states or unconscious processes observable or concrete.
  • The therapy encouraged him to exteriorize his anxieties through writing and drawing.
• In a Figurative Sense: Can be used to describe giving form to abstract ideas.
  • The new policy exteriorizes the government's commitment to transparency.

Variants and Related Words

• Exteriorization (noun): The act or process of exteriorizing.
  • The exteriorization of her grief was a healthy step in the healing process.
• Exterior (adjective/noun): The outer surface or structure; external.
• Externalize (verb): A very close synonym, often used interchangeably with "exteriorize" in its general sense.

Synonyms

• Externalize: To give external existence or form to.
• Manifest: To display or show (a quality or feeling) by one's acts or appearance.
• Objectify: To express (something abstract) in a concrete form.
• Express: To convey (a thought or feeling) in words or by gestures and conduct.

Antonyms

• Internalize: To make (attitudes or behavior) part of one's nature by learning or unconscious assimilation.
• Suppress: To restrain or inhibit (an action, process, or feeling).

Related Phrases/Concepts

• To bring to the surface: To cause (a concealed feeling or problem) to become known or apparent.
• To give outward form to: To create a physical or visible representation of an idea.

Verb

1. make external or objective, or give reality to
   • language externalizes our thoughts
2. bring outside the body for surgery, of organs