civilize

verb

/ˈsɪvəlaɪz/

(British English also civilise)

动词形式

present simple I / you / we / they civilize	/ˈsɪvəlaɪz/ /ˈsɪvəlaɪz/
he / she / it civilizes	/ˈsɪvəlaɪzɪz/ /ˈsɪvəlaɪzɪz/
past simple civilized	/ˈsɪvəlaɪzd/ /ˈsɪvəlaɪzd/
past participle civilized	/ˈsɪvəlaɪzd/ /ˈsɪvəlaɪzd/
-ing form civilizing	/ˈsɪvəlaɪzɪŋ/ /ˈsɪvəlaɪzɪŋ/

civilize somebody/something to educate and improve a person or a society; to make somebody’s behaviour or manners better教化；开化；使文明；使有教养
- The girls in a class tend to have a civilizing influence on the boys.班上的女生往往能让男生文雅起来。
词源early 17th cent.: from French civiliser, from civil ‘civil’.