urbanization

noun

ur·​ban·​i·​za·​tion ˌər-bə-nə-ˈzā-shən 

: the quality or state of being urbanized or the process of becoming urbanized

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The word urbanization started appearing in print way back in the 1880s, which says something about the growth of American cities. The expansion of Los Angeles was an early example of uncontrolled urbanization. Urbanization is often seen as a negative trend, with bad effects on quality of life and the environment. But apartments require much less heat than houses, and commuting by mass transit rather than cars can reduce pollution and energy use, and cities offer improved opportunities for jobs (and often for education and housing as well), so city growth doesn't make everyone unhappy.

Examples of urbanization in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Speaking at the Abu Dhabi Infrastructure Summit being held in the Emirate on Tuesday, industry leaders noted that rapid urbanization would demand a strategic alignment of international best practices on sustainable construction and energy efficiency. —Gaurav Sharma, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025

And yet, the occurrence of pandemics is expected to increase in frequency due to climate change, mass migration, urbanization, and ecosystem destruction. —Time, 11 June 2025

Changes to the landscape like urbanization can create a more favorable habitat for plants like ragweed. —Umair Irfan, Wired News, 5 Apr. 2025

See Buy or Sell MLM stock? MLM is frequently regarded as a long-term asset that will gain from sustained urbanization, infrastructure enhancements, and population growth, but history paints a different picture. —Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 2 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1888, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for urbanization

• abbreviation
• abomination
• acceleration
• accentuation
• accommodation
• accreditation
• acculturation
• accumulation
• acetylation
• adjudication
• administration
• adulteration