Formalising

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The action of converting informal practices into structured and recognized formats entails outlining clear protocols and criteria for acceptance
2. This process involves establishing official standards and guidelines to transform an unregulated state into one that is formally acknowledged
3. The act of changing casual or unofficial methods into systematic protocols involves creating accepted procedures and criteria for recognition

Etymology: The verb "formalising" is just the present participle of "formalise", so its history is really the history of two parts. The base, "formal", came into English from Middle French and goes back to Latin "formalis", from "forma" meaning shape or form. The ending is the more interesting piece. The suffix "-ise" was borrowed from Middle French "-iser", which had itself come from Late Latin "-izare", and that Latin suffix was taken from Ancient Greek "-izein" (written with the letters "-ίζειν"). Greek used it to build verbs meaning "to make into" or "to act in the manner of", so the suffix carries a sense of turning something into a particular condition. Put together, "formalise" means to give something a formal character, to make it official or fixed in set form. English speakers adopted the suffix broadly, which is why the same pattern appears in words like "modernise" and "realise". The verb is therefore a plainly built formation: an English adjective with a Greek-derived verb ending, with the participle form "-ing" added on top.

Synonyms: systematizing, organizing

Antonyms: disorganizing