demilitarize

/diˈmɪlətəˌraɪz/

Other forms: demilitarized; demilitarizing; demilitarizes

To demilitarize is to remove all armed forces from an area. When a country brings its troops home at the end of a war, they demilitarize the region.

When a government removes its military forces, it demilitarizes the area those troops once occupied. This can happen because a conflict has ended, or for political or financial reasons. Removing military-grade weapons is also known as demilitarizing. If you retrofitted an old Army tank to be a food truck, you'd need to demilitarize it first. Demilitarize is made up of the prefix de-, or "not," and militarize, from the Latin militaris, "warlike."

Definitions of demilitarize

1. verb

   do away with the military organization and potential of
   synonyms: demilitarise

   antonyms:

   militarize

   lend a military character to (a country), as by building up a military force

   types:

   neutralise, neutralize

   make incapable of military action

   type of:

   disarm, unarm

   take away the weapons from; render harmless
2. verb

   remove offensive capability from
   synonyms: demilitarise, disarm