asexualization
|a-sex-u-al-i-za-tion|
/eɪˌsɛkʃuəlaɪˈzeɪʃən/
(asexualize)
making non-sexual; removing sexual characteristics
Etymology
'asexualization' originates from modern English formation: the verb 'asexualize' + the noun-forming suffix '-ation'. 'Asexualize' itself combines the prefix 'a-' (from Greek 'a-' meaning 'not') with 'sexual' (from Latin 'sexus' meaning 'sex') and the verb-forming suffix '-ize' (from Greek/Latin via French/English).
'asexual' entered English in the late 19th to early 20th century from Neo-Latin 'asexualis' (formed with Greek prefix 'a-' + Latin-root related to 'sexus'). The verb 'asexualize' and the derived noun 'asexualization' are later English formations, created by adding the productive English suffixes '-ize' and '-ation' to the adjective 'asexual'.
Initially, elements meant 'not' (a-) and 'sex' (sexus); over time the compounded adjective 'asexual' came to mean 'without sexual characteristics or sexuality', and the modern noun 'asexualization' evolved to mean 'the process of making or becoming asexual' or, contextually, 'a shift toward asexual reproduction'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
the process or act of making something or someone asexual or removing sexual characteristics or sexual content (social, cultural, medical contexts).
The director's asexualization of the protagonist shifted the film's focus away from romantic and sexual themes.
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Noun 2
in biology or population studies, the process or occurrence of a shift toward asexual reproduction or predominance of non-sexual reproductive modes.
Researchers observed asexualization in the isolated population, where asexual reproduction became more common than sexual reproduction.
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Last updated: 2025/10/27 21:02