Dictionary
cannibalize
verb can·ni·bal·ize \ˈka-nə-bə-ˌlīz\
: to remove parts from a machine, car, etc., to repair or build another one
can·ni·bal·izedcan·ni·bal·iz·ing
Full Definition of CANNIBALIZE
transitive verb
1
a : to take salvageable parts from (as a disabled machine) for use in building or repairing another machine b : to make use of (a part taken from one thing) in building, repairing, or creating something else
2
: to deprive of an essential part or element in creating or sustaining another facility or enterprise <the energy system has begun cannibalizing the economic system it is supposed to fuel — Barry Commoner>
3
: to use or draw on material of (as another writer or an earlier work) <a biography that cannibalizes previous biographies>
4
: to take (sales) away from an existing product by selling or being sold as a similar but new product usually from the same manufacturer; also : to affect (as an existing product) adversely by cannibalizing sales
intransitive verb
1
: to practice cannibalism
2
: to cannibalize one unit for the sake of another of the same kind
— can·ni·bal·i·za·tion \ˌka-nə-bə-lə-ˈzā-shən\ noun
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First Known Use of CANNIBALIZE
1943
Rhymes with CANNIBALIZE
accessorize, acclimatize, actualize, aerobicize, aestheticize, Africanize, allegorize, alphabetize, analogize, anatomize, anesthetize, animalize, annualize, antagonize, anthologize, anticlockwise, apologize, apostatize, apostrophize, arabicize, aromatize, automatize, bureaucratize, capitalize, categorize, catheterize, catholicize, characterize, collectivize, commercialize, commoditize, communalize, computerize, conservatize, containerize, contrariwise, conveyorize, cosmeticize, counterclockwise, criminalize, cross-fertilize, cut down to size, decentralize, decolonize, de-emphasize, de-energize, defeminize, deformalize, deglamorize, dehumanize, deionize, demagnetize, demobilize, democratize, demoralize, denationalize, deodorize, depersonalize, depolarize, depressurize, desensitize, destabilize, destigmatize, detribalize, devitalize, diabolize, digitalize, disenfranchise, disorganize, economize, emblematize, emotionalize, epitomize, epoxidize, eroticize, eternalize, evangelize, extemporize, externalize, familiarize, fanaticize, fictionalize, floor exercise, fool's paradise, formularize, free enterprise, gelatinize, generalize, geologize, Hispanicize, historicize, homogenize, hospitalize, hypothesize, idealize, illegalize, immobilize, immortalize, impersonalize, Indianize, indigenize, infantilize, initialize, internalize, italicize, legitimize, liberalize, literalize, lobotomize, lysogenize, macadamize, marginalize, metabolize, metastasize, militarize, mineralize, monopolize, mythologize, nationalize, naturalize, parenthesize, philosophize, poeticize, politicize, popularize, prioritize, proselytize, radicalize, reorganize, revitalize, ritualize, romanticize, secularize, self-fertilize, sensualize, sexualize, sovietize, subjectivize, suburbanize, subvocalize, systematize, temporalize, theologize, traditionalize, trivialize, ventriloquize, visualize
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