depersonalize
|de-per-son-al-ize|
🇺🇸
/ˌdiːˈpɝsənəˌlaɪz/
🇬🇧
/ˌdiːˈpɜːsənəˌlaɪz/
make impersonal / remove personal identity
Etymology
'depersonalize' originates from English formation using the prefix 'de-' (from Latin 'de-') + 'personal' (from Latin 'personalis') + the verb-forming suffix '-ize' (from Greek '-izein' via Latin and French).
'personal' ultimately comes from Latin 'persona' meaning 'mask' or 'person'; the modern formation 'de-' + 'personal' + '-ize' yielded 'depersonalize' in English through productive word-formation in the 19th-20th centuries.
Initially constructed to mean 'make nonpersonal' or 'remove personal aspects'; over time it has retained this core sense while also being applied in technical senses (e.g., data anonymization, clinical descriptions of dissociation).
Meanings by Part of Speech
Verb 1
to make something impersonal or to remove personal characteristics or identity from a person or thing.
Automated replies can depersonalize customer support and frustrate users.
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Verb 2
in psychology/psychiatry, to cause someone to feel detached from themselves or to experience depersonalization (a sense of unreality or estrangement from one's self).
Certain medications or severe stress can depersonalize patients, leaving them feeling detached.
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Verb 3
to remove identifying personal data or identifiers from records or data sets (to anonymize).
Researchers depersonalize datasets before sharing them to protect participants' privacy.
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Last updated: 2025/09/15 12:55