What does categorize mean?
To categorize is to sort people, objects, ideas, or information into distinct groups according to shared characteristics. It is one of the most fundamental operations of human thought: libraries categorize books by subject, scientists categorize species by traits, and businesses categorize customers by behavior. The verb is used across registers, from everyday speech ("I'd categorize that movie as a comedy") to technical fields such as data science, psychology, and taxonomy, where precise classification matters. It carries a neutral connotation, though describing something as difficult to categorize often suggests it resists tidy definition. Related forms include "categorization," the noun for the act or process itself. The word traces back through French to Greek "kategoria," a term Aristotle employed to describe the basic kinds of being. Whether organizing a closet or structuring a database, to categorize is to impose order on complexity.
verbTo arrange or classify things, people, or ideas into groups or categories according to shared characteristics.
- To place people or things into classes or groups based on shared qualities or features.
"The museum's curators spent months categorizing the artifacts by period and region."
"Researchers categorized the responses into three broad themes before beginning their analysis."
"Critics have struggled to categorize her music, which blends folk, jazz, and electronic influences."
The word "category" comes straight from Aristotle, who used the Greek "kategoria" over 2,300 years ago to describe the most fundamental ways reality can be sorted — every time you file an email, you're thinking like an ancient Greek philosopher.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of categorize
The verb "categorize" derives from "category," which entered English from French "catégorie" in the late sixteenth century. The ultimate source is Greek "kategoria," formed from "kategeisthai," meaning "to accuse" or, more broadly, "to assert or predicate," built on "agoreuein" (to speak in the assembly). Aristotle famously used "kategoriai" to name his ten fundamental classes of being. The verb "categorize" developed later, appearing in English by the nineteenth century as classification became central to science and administration.
Related word forms
How categorize is actually used
A standard, neutral word in both formal academic writing and everyday usage; it carries no strong connotation, though saying a person or thing is hard to categorize can imply it defies convention. The spelling varies: "categorize" is standard in American English, while "categorise" predominates in British English.
Easily confused with categorize
"Categorise" is simply the British spelling of the same verb, while "categorize" is the American spelling — they are not different words.