Instrumentalises

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Uses people or situations as mere means to an end, exploiting them for someone's own advantage ; converts something into a tool or implement for a particular function
2. Exploits individuals or circumstances as convenient pawns for personal gain ; shapes an object or idea into a working instrument for a specific use
3. Treats others merely as expedients to advance an aim ; fashions something into a device or means used to accomplish a task

Etymology: The verb "instrumentalises" is simply the third-person singular form of "instrumentalise," so the story belongs to the verb itself. "Instrumentalise" is built from the adjective "instrumental" plus the suffix "-ise," a verb-forming ending that English took in from Old French and that goes back, through Late Latin, to Ancient Greek "-izein," used for making or treating something in a particular way. The adjective "instrumental" is the older root. It comes from the idea of an instrument as a tool or means, so to instrumentalise something is to treat it as a tool, using a person, idea or situation purely for another purpose. That sense of reducing something to its usefulness is what the verb carries.

Synonyms: instrumentalize, exploit, use