Pseudonymising

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Replacing the real names of people or places with invented alternative names, often to conceal identity in writing or research
2. Disguising the true identity of individuals by assigning them made-up names in a text, study or record
3. Substituting fictitious names for actual ones so that the original persons or subjects cannot readily be recognized

Etymology: "Pseudonymising" is the present participle of "pseudonymise", a verb built from "pseudonym" and the suffix "-ise". The base noun comes from Greek "pseudōnymon", combining "pseudēs", meaning false, with "onoma", meaning name, so the literal sense is "false name". The verb simply turns that noun into an action: to give someone or something a false name. The suffix "-ise" (or "-ize") is a common way of forming verbs from nouns and adjectives, as in "criticise" or "modernise". Attaching it to "pseudonym" produces a verb meaning to apply a pseudonym, and the "-ing" ending turns that verb into the participle used in phrases such as "pseudonymising the data" or "pseudonymising the records".