What does bestialize mean?
Bestialize is a formal verb meaning to reduce a person, group, or society to a bestial or animal-like condition — to strip away the reason, dignity, and moral sensibility regarded as distinctively human. It may also describe the act of portraying someone as beastlike. Derived from Latin 'bestia', meaning beast, it belongs to a family of words including 'bestial' and 'bestiality'. The verb is uncommon in everyday conversation but appears in serious moral, literary, and political commentary, often in discussions of propaganda, war, and social decay: writers speak of efforts to bestialize the enemy, or warn that cruelty can bestialize those who practice it. Its force lies in its stark imagery — it frames dehumanization not merely as unkindness but as a regression from humanity itself, which makes it a pointed choice when ordinary words like 'degrade' feel too mild.
verbTo reduce a person, group, or society to a bestial or brutishly animal state; to deprive of human qualities such as reason, dignity, or moral feeling. It can also mean to portray or represent as beastlike.
- To deprive a person or society of human qualities, reducing them to a brutish, animal-like condition.
- To depict or represent someone or something as beastlike or savage.
"The propagandists sought to bestialize the enemy, portraying them as savage creatures rather than human beings."
"Critics argued that the regime's rhetoric was designed to bestialize its opponents and justify their persecution."
"In his essay, he warned that constant exposure to cruelty could bestialize even ordinary citizens."
When writers wanted to describe propaganda at its most dehumanizing, they reached for 'bestialize' — a word that accuses its subject of turning people into beasts in the mind's eye.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of bestialize
Bestialize derives from Latin 'bestia', meaning beast or wild animal, combined with the verb-forming suffix '-ize'. It entered English in the early modern period alongside related borrowings such as 'bestial' and 'bestiality', all tracing back through Old French and Latin to the same root. Cognate forms appear across European languages, reflecting Latin's influence on the vocabulary of moral and descriptive writing.
Related word forms
How bestialize is actually used
Formal and somewhat literary; rare in everyday speech but found in moral, political, and philosophical writing. It carries strongly negative connotations and is typically used of dehumanizing forces — propaganda, cruelty, degradation — rather than casual behavior. The related adjective 'bestial' is considerably more common.
Easily confused with bestialize
Brutalize usually means to treat someone cruelly or violently, while bestialize emphasizes stripping away human qualities altogether, reducing someone to an animal-like state.