-ize
aɪz
-ize turns the handle until it becomes that
The picture Something sitting still is turned by one handle until it becomes the state the front half names. -ize turns a thing into that state; -tion freezes the turning itself into a block.
Where the picture shows up in -ize
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turned toward order
Let me organize these files first.
let miː ˈɔːrɡənaɪz ðiːz faɪlz fɜːrst
Let me put these papers in order first.
Loose sheets on a desk are picked up one by one and stood in a single row by date.
organ (frame) + -ize.
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turned toward sorry
I want to apologize for the delay.
aɪ wɑːnt tuː əˈpɑːlədʒaɪz fɔːr ðə dɪˈleɪ
I'm sorry it came late.
A head and a voice turn toward the other person, palms opening outward.
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turned into memory
You don't have to memorize the codes.
juː doʊnt hæv tuː ˈmeməraɪz ðə koʊdz
You don't need to learn the codes by heart.
Numbers written on a slip are pushed into a drawer inside the head and the slip is closed away.
memory + -ize.
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pressed toward a summary
Can you summarize the meeting on one page?
kæn juː ˈsʌməraɪz ðə ˈmiːtɪŋ ɑːn wʌn peɪdʒ
Could you put the meeting on a single page?
Two hours of talk is pressed down by hand until it fits inside one sheet of paper.
summary + -ize.
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turned toward new
The owner will modernize the kitchen.
ði ˈoʊnər wɪl ˈmɑːdərnaɪz ðə ˈkɪtʃən
The owner is going to redo the kitchen.
The old gas range is pulled out and new equipment slides into the same gap.
modern + -ize.
All of it in one picture
-ize is one handle that changes a state. Turn scattered papers toward order and you organize; turn your own words toward sorry and you apologize. Turn outside numbers into memory and you memorize, press a long story toward a summary and you summarize, turn an old kitchen toward new and you modernize. So with any -ize word, just watch what is being turned, and toward which state.