pronunc at modern +ˌīz verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
transitive verb
: to make modern : adapt to modern needs, taste, or usage
a determination to modernize poetry, and bring it closer to life — F.R.Leavis
the method of lumbering has been modernized — American Guide Series: Maine
as
a. : remodel , repair
modernize the theater
the curse of many downtown districts … is the owner who refuses to modernize his building — Hal Burton
b. : to change (a text) to make conform to modern usage in spelling and language
has modernized it quite considerably, printing proper names in their modern form, correcting grammatical lapses, and inserting the equivalent of obsolete words in brackets — G.R.Crone
intransitive verb
: to adopt modern ways : act, write, or speak in a modern manner
it is natural … for scribes to modernize and for poets to archaize — C.A.Lynch
• mod·ern·iz·er -zə(r) noun -s