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commodification

Definition of Commodification

(noun) The act or process of changing something into a commodity that can be bought, sold, or traded.

Example of Commodification

  • People: organ transplants, slavery

Commodification Pronunciation

Pronunciation Usage Guide

Syllabification: com·mod·i·fi·ca·tion

Audio Pronunciation

– American English
– British English

International Phonetic Alphabet

  • American English – /kəˌmɑdəfəˈkeɪʃən/
  • British English – /kəˌmɒdᵻfᵻˈkeɪʃn/

Usage Notes

  • Plural: commodifications
  • Within the social sciences, commodification typically has a negative connotation, referring to things that should not be commodities (e.g., water or education).
  • Also called commoditization (commoditisation).

Additional Information

Related Terms


Works Consulted

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Princeton University. 2010. WordNet. (https://wordnet.princeton.edu/).

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Stewart, Paul, and Johan Zaaiman, eds. 2015. Sociology: A Concise South African Introduction. Cape Town: Juta.

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Wikipedia contributors. (N.d.) Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. (https://en.wikipedia.org/).

Wikipedia contributors. (N.d.) Wiktionary, The Free Dictionary. Wikimedia Foundation. (http://en.wiktionary.org).

Cite the Definition of Commodification

ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)

Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “commodification.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved March 28, 2024 (https://sociologydictionary.org/commodification/).

APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)

commodification. (2013). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/commodification/

Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)

Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “commodification.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed March 28, 2024. https://sociologydictionary.org/commodification/.

MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)

“commodification.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2013. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://sociologydictionary.org/commodification/>.