What does suburbanize mean?
Suburbanize means to make something suburban, especially by developing land outside a city center into housing and other features typical of the suburbs. It can also describe people or communities moving from a city or rural area into suburban neighborhoods. The verb is especially common in discussion of urban planning, real-estate development, and the environmental or social effects of expanding metropolitan areas. Its implications depend on context: it may simply identify a change in settlement patterns, but it can also suggest the conversion of farmland or open landscape into commuter-oriented development. Although more often transitive, as in “suburbanize the countryside,” it may also be used intransitively to describe people moving to suburban districts. The related noun, suburbanization, names the broader process of cities and their surroundings becoming suburban in character.
To make an area, settlement, or community suburban in character.
"The proposed development could suburbanize a large area of rural farmland."
Often transitive and particularly associated with urban planning and development.
To move to or begin living in the suburbs.
"Many families suburbanized during the postwar housing boom."
Used intransitively; this sense is less common than the transitive sense.
To suburbanize is to turn the countryside into a place from which many people commute back into the city.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of suburbanize
Suburbanize was formed in the 19th century from suburb and the suffix -ize, meaning “to make” or “to become.” Suburb ultimately comes through Old French from Latin suburbium, a term for an area outside a city; its root is the Latin urbs, meaning “city.” This same root also underlies urban, urbane, and urbanize.
Related word forms
How suburbanize is actually used
The word is relatively uncommon but is most often used in urban planning, development, and social commentary. It can carry a neutral descriptive meaning or, depending on context, suggest the loss of rural character and the spread of low-density development.
Easily confused with suburbanize
Urbanize means to develop an area into a city or give it characteristically urban features, whereas suburbanize means to give it characteristically suburban features.
Suburban is an adjective describing something located in or characteristic of the suburbs, while suburbanize is the verb describing the process of making an area suburban.