transitive verb
-·ized·, -·iz·ing to eliminate or reduce the legal penalties for (a specified crime)
decriminalize
de·crim·i·nal·izeWebster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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MLA Style
"decriminalize." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 23 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/decriminalize>.
APA Style
decriminalize. (n.d.). Retrieved February 23rd, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/decriminalize
decriminalize
transitive verb
de·crim·i·nal·ized, de·crim·i·nal·iz·ing, de·crim·i·nal·iz·esTo reduce or abolish criminal penalties for: decriminalize the use of marijuana.
Related Forms:
- de·crim′i·nal·i·za′tion
noun
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"decriminalize." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 23 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/decriminalize>.
APA Style
decriminalize. (n.d.). Retrieved February 23rd, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/decriminalize
Verb
(third-person singular simple present decriminalizes, present participle decriminalizing, simple past and past participle decriminalized)
- To change the laws so something is no longer a crime. Opposite of criminalize.
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"decriminalize." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 23 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/decriminalize>.
APA Style
decriminalize. (n.d.). Retrieved February 23rd, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/decriminalize
