'alveolarize' originates from combining the adjective 'alveolar' and the verb-forming suffix '-ize'. 'Alveolar' in turn comes from Latin 'alveolus' meaning 'small hollow' or 'cavity', and '-ize' comes via Greek/Latin use of the suffix meaning 'to make' or 'to render'.

'alveolus' in Latin gave rise to English 'alveolus' and the adjective 'alveolar', and English later formed 'alveolarize' by adding the productive suffix '-ize' (from Greek -izein / Late Latin -izare) to mean 'make or become alveolar'.

Initially related to the Latin root meaning 'small hollow' (a literal cavity), it evolved into technical senses in English: either 'pertaining to the alveolus/ridge' (anatomy) or 'pertaining to articulation at the alveolar ridge' (phonetics); the verb form came to mean 'to make or become alveolar' in these specialized senses.