Countryfying

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Transforming something to resemble rural traditions or environments ; infusing with characteristics or manners associated with the countryside ; adapting urban areas, customs, or styles to reflect a rustic, agricultural influence
2. Causing a person, place, or thing to acquire qualities typical of the rural setting ; imbuing with the simplicity or traits of the countryside ; making more pastoral in nature or appearance
3. Giving a more rural or pastoral quality to formerly urban or cosmopolitan elements ; changing customs, appearance, or character to match that of the countryside ; instilling a country-like atmosphere or lifestyle

Etymology: "Countryfying" is the present participle and gerund of "countryfy," so its history is that of the verb it comes from. Built from "country" with the verb-forming suffix "-fy," the verb is a plain English formation, and the suffix is the same one that turns "beauty" into "beautify" or "simple" into "simplify." That makes the word a transparent blend of an everyday noun and a long-established verb-making ending rather than a borrowing from another language. The noun "country" itself came into English from Old French "contrée," meaning a region or stretch of land, which in turn traces back to Latin "contrata," a word for land lying opposite or in front of one. The sense of the open, rural land outside towns grew naturally out of that broader idea of a district or region, which is why the adjective "countryfied" and its verb cousin carry the sense of making a place look more like the open fields and villages beyond the city.

Synonyms: rusticizing, ruralizing, provincializing, countrifying, pastoralizing

Antonyms: urbanizing, modernizing, industrializing, metropolizing, civilizing