See posterize in All languages combined, or Wiktionary
{
"derived": [
{
"_dis1": "0 0 0",
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},
{
"_dis1": "0 0 0",
"word": "posterisation"
},
{
"_dis1": "0 0 0",
"word": "posterizing"
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{
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"tags": [
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"2": "to reduce colours"
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"2": "to slam dunk",
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}
],
"etymology_text": "From poster + -ize (suffix forming verbs denoting something which is done or made). Sense 1.1 (“to reduce the number of colours”) refers to the original use of the process to produce posters. Sense 1.2 (“to score a slam dunk in basketball against (one or more opposing players) by leaping over them”) refers to the action being so spectacular as to warrant a photograph of it being printed on a poster.",
"forms": [
{
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"tags": [
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{
"form": "posterizing",
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{
"form": "posterized",
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},
{
"form": "posterized",
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"pos": "verb",
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{
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"tags": [
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"translation": "in sense 1.1, attested earlier than the verb",
"word": "posterised"
}
],
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
{
"kind": "other",
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"name": "Graphic design",
"orig": "en:Graphic design",
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{
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{
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{
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{
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{
"_dis": "51 15 34",
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{
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{
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{
"_dis": "46 23 31",
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{
"_dis": "43 27 31",
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{
"_dis": "42 29 28",
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],
"glosses": [
"To inadvertently or intentionally reduce the number of colours in (a photograph or other image), changing a continuous gradation of tone to several regions of fewer tones with abrupt changes from one tone to another."
],
"id": "en-posterize-en-verb-en:to_reduce_colours",
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],
[
"photography",
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[
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"inadvertently"
],
[
"intentionally",
"intentionally"
],
[
"reduce",
"reduce"
],
[
"number",
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[
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],
[
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[
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[
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[
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[
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[
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[
"region",
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[
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],
"raw_glosses": [
"(transitive)",
"(graphic design, photography) To inadvertently or intentionally reduce the number of colours in (a photograph or other image), changing a continuous gradation of tone to several regions of fewer tones with abrupt changes from one tone to another."
],
"senseid": [
"en:to reduce colours"
],
"tags": [
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"graphic-design",
"hobbies",
"lifestyle",
"photography"
]
},
{
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},
{
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"name": "Basketball",
"orig": "en:Basketball",
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},
{
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"langcode": "en",
"name": "Sports",
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},
{
"_dis": "33 44 23",
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70,
80
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638,
648
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],
"ref": "1991 June 7, Michael Wilbon, “Great shot! Jordan’s best amazingly goes one better”, in The Washington Post, Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 26 Jan 2025, page D01:",
"text": "Probably, [Sam] Perkins just wanted to get out of the way and not be \"posterized,\" which is what happens when the dunkee is humiliated by the dunker. But [Michael] Jordan thought Perkins, his college teammate, would try to block the dunk, so he switched the ball from his right to his left hand at chest level. […] Jordan extended his left hand, and flipped the ball off glass, with reverse spin, into the basket. […] Only one other such spectacular shot in a game of consequence comes to mind, the time in the 1980 NBA finals when Julius Erving wrapped himself around the basket, going out of bounds while in the air in the process, and posterized Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Mark Landsberger with a reverse one-hand flip off the glass.",
"type": "quotation"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To score a slam dunk in basketball against (one or more opposing players) by leaping over them; also (by extension, sports, slang), to score a goal, a point, etc., in some other sport against (one or more opposing players) in a spectacular manner."
],
"id": "en-posterize-en-verb-en:to_slam_dunk",
"links": [
[
"basketball",
"basketball"
],
[
"score",
"score#Verb"
],
[
"slam dunk",
"slam dunk#Noun"
],
[
"basketball",
"basketball#Noun"
],
[
"opposing",
"opposing#Adjective"
],
[
"player",
"player"
],
[
"leaping",
"leap#Verb"
],
[
"sports",
"sports"
],
[
"goal",
"goal#Noun"
],
[
"point",
"point#Noun"
],
[
"sport",
"sport#Noun"
],
[
"spectacular",
"spectacular#Adjective"
],
[
"manner",
"manner#Noun"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(transitive)",
"(Canada, US, basketball, slang) To score a slam dunk in basketball against (one or more opposing players) by leaping over them; also (by extension, sports, slang), to score a goal, a point, etc., in some other sport against (one or more opposing players) in a spectacular manner."
],
"senseid": [
"en:to slam dunk"
],
"tags": [
"Canada",
"US",
"slang",
"transitive"
],
"topics": [
"ball-games",
"basketball",
"games",
"hobbies",
"lifestyle",
"sports"
],
"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "6 89 5",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"lang_code": "fi",
"sense": "to score a slam dunk in basketball against (one or more opposing players) by leaping over them; to score a goal, a point, etc., in some other sport against (one or more opposing players) in a spectacular manner",
"topics": [
"basketball",
"ball-games",
"games",
"sports",
"hobbies",
"lifestyle"
],
"word": "donkata ilmiömäisesti"
}
]
},
{
"categories": [
{
"kind": "other",
"langcode": "en",
"name": "Graphic design",
"orig": "en:Graphic design",
"parents": [],
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"kind": "other",
"langcode": "en",
"name": "Photography",
"orig": "en:Photography",
"parents": [],
"source": "w"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To inadvertently or intentionally reduce the number of colours in a photograph or other image, changing a continuous gradation of tone to several regions of fewer tones with abrupt changes from one tone to another."
],
"id": "en-posterize-en-verb-R2qLLzM3",
"links": [
[
"graphic design",
"graphic design"
],
[
"photography",
"photography"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(intransitive, graphic design, photography) To inadvertently or intentionally reduce the number of colours in a photograph or other image, changing a continuous gradation of tone to several regions of fewer tones with abrupt changes from one tone to another."
],
"tags": [
"intransitive"
],
"topics": [
"arts",
"graphic-design",
"hobbies",
"lifestyle",
"photography"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"ipa": "/ˈpəʊstəɹaɪz/",
"tags": [
"Received-Pronunciation"
]
},
{
"ipa": "/ˈpoʊstəˌɹaɪz/",
"tags": [
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]
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"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "51 7 42",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"lang_code": "fi",
"sense": "(transitive) to reduce the number of colours in (a photograph or other image); (intransitive) to reduce the number of colours in a photograph or other image",
"word": "posterisoida"
},
{
"_dis1": "51 7 42",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"lang_code": "de",
"sense": "(transitive) to reduce the number of colours in (a photograph or other image); (intransitive) to reduce the number of colours in a photograph or other image",
"word": "posterisieren"
},
{
"_dis1": "51 7 42",
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"lang_code": "pt",
"sense": "(transitive) to reduce the number of colours in (a photograph or other image); (intransitive) to reduce the number of colours in a photograph or other image",
"word": "posterizar"
}
],
"wikipedia": [
"Cleveland Cavaliers",
"Kevin Love",
"LeBron James",
"Los Angeles Lakers"
],
"word": "posterize"
}
{
"categories": [
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"English entries with incorrect language header",
"English lemmas",
"English terms suffixed with -ize",
"English verbs",
"Entries with translation boxes",
"Oxford spellings",
"Pages with 1 entry",
"Pages with entries",
"Requests for review of Mandarin translations",
"Terms with Finnish translations",
"Terms with German translations",
"Terms with Mandarin translations",
"Terms with Portuguese translations"
],
"derived": [
{
"word": "posterization"
},
{
"word": "posterisation"
},
{
"word": "posterizing"
},
{
"tags": [
"noun"
],
"word": "posterising"
}
],
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"2": "to reduce colours"
},
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"1": "en",
"2": "to slam dunk",
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},
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}
],
"etymology_text": "From poster + -ize (suffix forming verbs denoting something which is done or made). Sense 1.1 (“to reduce the number of colours”) refers to the original use of the process to produce posters. Sense 1.2 (“to score a slam dunk in basketball against (one or more opposing players) by leaping over them”) refers to the action being so spectacular as to warrant a photograph of it being printed on a poster.",
"forms": [
{
"form": "posterizes",
"tags": [
"present",
"singular",
"third-person"
]
},
{
"form": "posterizing",
"tags": [
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"present"
]
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{
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"participle",
"past"
]
},
{
"form": "posterized",
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},
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}
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"tags": [
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}
],
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{
"categories": [
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"en:Graphic design",
"en:Photography"
],
"glosses": [
"To inadvertently or intentionally reduce the number of colours in (a photograph or other image), changing a continuous gradation of tone to several regions of fewer tones with abrupt changes from one tone to another."
],
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[
"graphic design",
"graphic design"
],
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"photography",
"photography"
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[
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[
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[
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[
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],
"raw_glosses": [
"(transitive)",
"(graphic design, photography) To inadvertently or intentionally reduce the number of colours in (a photograph or other image), changing a continuous gradation of tone to several regions of fewer tones with abrupt changes from one tone to another."
],
"senseid": [
"en:to reduce colours"
],
"tags": [
"transitive"
],
"topics": [
"arts",
"graphic-design",
"hobbies",
"lifestyle",
"photography"
]
},
{
"categories": [
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"Canadian English",
"English slang",
"English terms with quotations",
"English transitive verbs",
"en:Basketball",
"en:Sports"
],
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{
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70,
80
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648
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],
"ref": "1991 June 7, Michael Wilbon, “Great shot! Jordan’s best amazingly goes one better”, in The Washington Post, Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 26 Jan 2025, page D01:",
"text": "Probably, [Sam] Perkins just wanted to get out of the way and not be \"posterized,\" which is what happens when the dunkee is humiliated by the dunker. But [Michael] Jordan thought Perkins, his college teammate, would try to block the dunk, so he switched the ball from his right to his left hand at chest level. […] Jordan extended his left hand, and flipped the ball off glass, with reverse spin, into the basket. […] Only one other such spectacular shot in a game of consequence comes to mind, the time in the 1980 NBA finals when Julius Erving wrapped himself around the basket, going out of bounds while in the air in the process, and posterized Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Mark Landsberger with a reverse one-hand flip off the glass.",
"type": "quotation"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To score a slam dunk in basketball against (one or more opposing players) by leaping over them; also (by extension, sports, slang), to score a goal, a point, etc., in some other sport against (one or more opposing players) in a spectacular manner."
],
"links": [
[
"basketball",
"basketball"
],
[
"score",
"score#Verb"
],
[
"slam dunk",
"slam dunk#Noun"
],
[
"basketball",
"basketball#Noun"
],
[
"opposing",
"opposing#Adjective"
],
[
"player",
"player"
],
[
"leaping",
"leap#Verb"
],
[
"sports",
"sports"
],
[
"goal",
"goal#Noun"
],
[
"point",
"point#Noun"
],
[
"sport",
"sport#Noun"
],
[
"spectacular",
"spectacular#Adjective"
],
[
"manner",
"manner#Noun"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(transitive)",
"(Canada, US, basketball, slang) To score a slam dunk in basketball against (one or more opposing players) by leaping over them; also (by extension, sports, slang), to score a goal, a point, etc., in some other sport against (one or more opposing players) in a spectacular manner."
],
"senseid": [
"en:to slam dunk"
],
"tags": [
"Canada",
"US",
"slang",
"transitive"
],
"topics": [
"ball-games",
"basketball",
"games",
"hobbies",
"lifestyle",
"sports"
]
},
{
"categories": [
"English intransitive verbs",
"en:Graphic design",
"en:Photography"
],
"glosses": [
"To inadvertently or intentionally reduce the number of colours in a photograph or other image, changing a continuous gradation of tone to several regions of fewer tones with abrupt changes from one tone to another."
],
"links": [
[
"graphic design",
"graphic design"
],
[
"photography",
"photography"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(intransitive, graphic design, photography) To inadvertently or intentionally reduce the number of colours in a photograph or other image, changing a continuous gradation of tone to several regions of fewer tones with abrupt changes from one tone to another."
],
"tags": [
"intransitive"
],
"topics": [
"arts",
"graphic-design",
"hobbies",
"lifestyle",
"photography"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"ipa": "/ˈpəʊstəɹaɪz/",
"tags": [
"Received-Pronunciation"
]
},
{
"ipa": "/ˈpoʊstəˌɹaɪz/",
"tags": [
"General-American"
]
},
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],
"translations": [
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"lang_code": "fi",
"sense": "(transitive) to reduce the number of colours in (a photograph or other image); (intransitive) to reduce the number of colours in a photograph or other image",
"word": "posterisoida"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"lang_code": "de",
"sense": "(transitive) to reduce the number of colours in (a photograph or other image); (intransitive) to reduce the number of colours in a photograph or other image",
"word": "posterisieren"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"lang_code": "pt",
"sense": "(transitive) to reduce the number of colours in (a photograph or other image); (intransitive) to reduce the number of colours in a photograph or other image",
"word": "posterizar"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"lang_code": "fi",
"sense": "to score a slam dunk in basketball against (one or more opposing players) by leaping over them; to score a goal, a point, etc., in some other sport against (one or more opposing players) in a spectacular manner",
"topics": [
"basketball",
"ball-games",
"games",
"sports",
"hobbies",
"lifestyle"
],
"word": "donkata ilmiömäisesti"
}
],
"wikipedia": [
"Cleveland Cavaliers",
"Kevin Love",
"LeBron James",
"Los Angeles Lakers"
],
"word": "posterize"
}
Download raw JSONL data for posterize meaning in English (8.8kB)
This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2026-09-20 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2026-09-02 using wiktextract (d6fca27 and 65e1673). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.
If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.