Dictionary

prioritize en · VERB

Pronunciation

• [pɹaɪˈoɹ.taɪz] (Canada, General-American)
• [pɹaɪˈɒɹ.taɪz] (Received-Pronunciation)
• (Southern-England) audio
• [pɹɑe̯ˈɔ̟ɹətɑe̯z] (New-Zealand)
• /pɹɑeˈɔɹ.ə.tɑez/ (Australia)
• /pɹaɪˈɒɹ.ə.taɪz/ (New-Zealand)
• /pɹaɪˈɒɹ.ə.taɪz/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• /pɹaɪˈoɹ.ə.taɪz/ (Canada, General-American)

Etymology

From priority + -ize. First attested in 1967 as U.S. government jargon, becoming more widespread through the 1970s and ’80s, but still denounced as officialese by purists into the 1990s.

Meanings

1. (transitive) To value, do, or choose something first, or before other things.
   • In 2005 Houston Methodist Hospital (HMH) established a Sepsis Care Management Performance Improvement (CMPI) committee and prioritized sepsis detection and management in its ICUs, using the approaches of the Surviving Sepsis Campaign. 2015 November 14, Stephen L Jones, Carol M Ashton, Lisa Kiehne, Elizabeth Gigliotti, Charyl Bell-Gordon, Maureen Disbot, Faisal Masud, Beverly A Shirkey, Nelda P. Wray, “Reductions in sepsis mortality and costs after design and implementation of a nurse-based early recognition and response program”, in The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety, volume 41, number 11:
   • When I don't have time to buy everything at the store, I prioritize fresh fruit and vegetables over foods like rice or noodles.
   • Loretta's already designing the next smelter. She has some improvements in mind. The new one will prioritize silicon extraction and— 2017, Andy Weir, chapter 17, in Artemis, pages 295-6:
   • Boeing's article stressed prioritizing roll control during recovery from nose-down bank upsets unless the airplane was in a stall condition; if the airplane was stalled, Boeing recommended recovering from the stall before recovering from the upset. The article described the nose-down upset recovery technique as follows: "Reduce angle of attack. This unloads the wing, allows the airplane to accelerate, which reduces rudder deflection and improves lateral control ability. […]" 1999 March 24, National Transportation Safety Board, “1.18.10.2.3 1997 Through 1998—Information and Changes Disseminated by Boeing”, in Aircraft Accident Report: Uncontrolled Descent and Collision with Terrain, USAir Flight 427, Boeing 737-300, N513AU, Near Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, September 8, 1994, archived from the original on 04 Jun 2022, pages 205–206:
   • Skinimalism prioritizes skin health and lets your natural beauty shine through. 2022 February 1, Lourdes Avila Uribe, “Everything You Need To Know About 'Skinimalism', The Latest Beauty Trend”, in HuffPost:
2. (intransitive, transitive) To arrange or list a group of things in order of priority or importance.
3. (transitive) To rank something as having high priority.

Forms

Antonyms

marginalize · disfocus

Deriveds

prioritizable · underprioritize · subprioritize · reprioritise · prioritizer · deprioritize · reprioritize · overprioritize · misprioritize

Relateds

prioritization

Translations (33)

es anteponer (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · mi whakaarotau (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · sv prioritera (to rank as having priority) · de nach Wichtigkeit anordnen (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · de priorisieren (to rank as having priority) · cmn 確定優先順序 /确定优先顺序 (to rank as having priority) · el προτεραιοποιώ (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · es priorizar (to rank as having priority) · sv prioritera (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · tr önceliklendirmek (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · fi priorisoida (to rank as having priority) · cmn 優先考慮 /优先考虑 (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · cs stanovit priority (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · pt priorizar (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · fi priorisoida (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · cs stanovit pořadí důležitosti (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · ru приоритизи́ровать (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · fi asettaa/laittaa tärkeysjärjestykseen (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · de den Vorrang geben (to rank as having priority) · de vorrangig behandeln (to rank as having priority) · fr prioriser (to rank as having priority) · ja 優先させる (to rank as having priority) · el προτεραιοποιώ (to rank as having priority) · es priorizar (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · ru приоритизи́ровать (to rank as having priority) · de nach Wichtigkeit aufreihen (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · eo prioritatigi (to rank as having priority) · cs upřednostňovat (to rank as having priority) · fr prioriser (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · gl priorizar (to rank as having priority) · bg приоритизи́рам (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · eo laŭprioritatigi (to arrange or list in order of priority or importance) · ca prioritzar (to rank as having priority)

wikipedia: officialese