memorize

[ mem-uh-rahyz ]
See synonyms for memorize on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object),mem·o·rized, mem·o·riz·ing.
  1. to commit to memory; learn by heart: to memorize a poem.

verb (used without object),mem·o·rized, mem·o·riz·ing.
  1. to learn by heart: I've always been able to memorize easily.

Origin of memorize

1
First recorded in 1585–95; memor(y) + -ize
  • Also especially British, mem·o·rise .

Other words from memorize

  • mem·o·riz·a·ble, adjective
  • mem·o·ri·za·tion, noun
  • mem·o·riz·er, noun
  • re·mem·o·rize, verb (used with object), re·mem·o·rized, re·mem·o·riz·ing.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use memorize in a sentence

  • The heavy-set man spoke to her in French, but he failed to use a single one of the words she had memorized.

    The Amazing Interlude | Mary Roberts Rinehart
  • Using his pen name, "Moina," he specialized in war lyrics which were soon memorized by Southerners in general.

  • This connection according to the drawing should be studied and memorized.

    Elements of Plumbing | Samuel Dibble
  • But there is a new commandment added to the list of those to be memorized by the body-politic.

    Steam Steel and Electricity | James W. Steele
  • She must, Craven thought, often have stood before a mirror and carefully "memorized" herself in all her variety and detail.

    December Love | Robert Hichens

British Dictionary definitions for memorize

memorize

memorise

/ (ˈmɛməˌraɪz) /


verb
  1. (tr) to commit to memory; learn so as to remember

Derived forms of memorize

  • memorizable or memorisable, adjective
  • memorization or memorisation, noun
  • memorizer or memoriser, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012