Dictionary

criminalise en · VERB

Etymology

From criminal + -ise.

Meanings

1. (UK, alt-of, nonstandard) Non-Oxford British English standard spelling of criminalize.
   alt of criminalize
   • Thailand has dropped legislation to criminalise torture and disappearances after years of working on the bill, the United Nations human rights office said on Tuesday, leaving state employees unaccountable for serious crimes. 2017 March 1, “UN slams Thai 'culture of torture'”, in Bangkok Post:
   • Section 377A, which was introduced under British colonial rule, criminalises “any act of gross indecency with another male person”. The law carries a sentence of up to two years in prison, though it is not believed to have been enforced for more than a decade. 2022 August 21, Rebecca Ratcliffe, “Singapore to repeal law that criminalises sex between men”, in The Guardian:
   • As soon as it was suggested that it was considering the Swedish model – in which men are criminalised for buying sex, but the women working in prostitution are decriminalised – a slew of prominent male columnists started arguing against this infringement on a man's right to purchase a woman's body. 2008 February 27, Kira Cochrane, “How could it happen again?”, in The Guardian:
   • The chilling effects of criminalising exploratory conversations between a therapist and a young person that could be perceived as denying their identity will only make the holistic therapy recognised as critical by the Cass review even harder to access. 2023 October 22, The Observer, “The Observer view on gender dysphoria: criminalising therapy poses risk to children’s welfare”, in The Guardian:

Forms

Antonyms

decriminalise

Deriveds

criminalisation