This is part of an investigation I've been doing into the use and spelling of -ize suffix verbs and their spelling (-ize or -ise) in British English. For more details, related posts and the methods I've used, see the -ize / -ise page.
I'm also interested in the development of the use of -ize suffix verbs (eg realize/realise), compared with the use of French-based -ise verbs (eg surprise). And in the extent to which there was consistency in the spelling of these verbs, or a lack of it, in early publishing.
Jonathan Swift 1667 – 1745
Swift apparently uses relatively few -ize verbs. Apart from familiarize, all the examples in Gulliver's Travels are variations on civilize, and in the very long A Journal to Stella, I can only find one, naturalizing.
List of verbs
Links are to Dictionary.com (Dict), which includes etymology, and the Online Etymology Dictionary
authorise | Dict | OE | 1350–1400 | earlier auctorize < Medieval Latin aucto-riza-re; replacing Middle English autorisen < Middle French autoriser < Medieval Latin |
civilize | Dict | OE | 1595–1605 | < French civiliser |
criticize | Dict | OE | 1640–50 | critic + -ize |
familiarize | Dict | OE | 1600–10 | familiar + -ize |
mythologize | Dict | 1595–1605 | mytholog(y) + -ize; compare French mythologiser | |
naturalize | Dict | OE | 1585–95 | natural + -ize |
spiritualise | Dict | 1625–35 | spiritual + -ize |
Only one of these -ize verbs appears to have come from Latin, two are from French and the rest simply add an -ize suffix to existing English words
1704 Tale of a Tub
1704 | 1824 | |
This parable was immediately mythologised | ize | ise |
as they have spiritualised and refined them | ize | ize |
This is the utmost I am authorised to say | ize | ize |
that as the most uncivilised parts of mankind | ize | ize |
to critise (critick) his gate and ridicule his dress at such a juncture | ick | ise |
1726 Gulliver's Travels
- Wikipedia
- Project Gutenberg
- London 1765 - Parts 1 and 2
- London 1765 - Parts 1 and 2
- London 1812 - Vol 12 (Scott)
- London 1837
- London 1838
- London 1865
Appears to show a fairly common process, whereby z predominates in the eighteenth century, but with some inconsistencies. These get tidied up in the early nineteenth century and by the middle of the century s has taken over.
1765 | 1837 | 1865 | |
and the most barbarous become civilized | ize | ize | ise |
to civilize and reduce them from their barbarous way of living | ize | ize | |
only a little more civilized by some tincture of reason | ise | ize | ise |
perhaps a little more civilized | ize | ise | |
I soon grew so familiarized to the sight of spirits | ise | ize | |
a sufficient number of their inhabitants for civilizing Europe | ize | ise | |
sent to convert and civilize an idolatrous and barbarous people | ize | ize | ise |
that a people who could so far civilise brute animals | ise | ize | |
to be understood in all civilised nations | ise | ize | ise |
1766 The Journal to Stella
1814 | |
The Bill to repeal the Act for naturalising Protestant foreigners | ize |
I'm a 16-year-old student from Poland. During my free days I've been writing my book in English. If you are interested in literature, you might take a look: http://lunartale.blogspot.com/ and leave your opinion or remark, or maybe even get hooked in the story- who knows? :)
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