# Word + hoá: -ize / -ization in Vietnamese (B2)

> Hóa after a word means "turn into, make more so", like English -ize or -ization: hiện đại hóa (modernise), đơn giản hóa (simplify), số hóa (digitise), đô…

Source: https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/hoa-ize/ · Updated 2026-10-17

**-ize / -ization**

Pattern: `[noun or adjective] + hóa`

Level: B2 (our estimate) · Register: formal

Typed without accents: hoa

*Hóa* after a word means "turn into, make more so", like English -ize or -ization: *hiện đại hóa* (modernise), *đơn giản hóa* (simplify), *số hóa* (digitise), *đô thị hóa* (urbanisation). The word in front says what something becomes: *hiện đại*, modern; *đơn giản*, simple.

The same word works as a verb and as a noun, with nothing added: *số hóa tài liệu* is "digitise the documents", and *quá trình đô thị hóa* is "the process of urbanisation".

You'll meet it constantly in news reports, government plans and papers: *công nghiệp hóa* (industrialisation), *tự động hóa* (automation), *đa dạng hóa* (diversify), *nội địa hóa* (making a product's parts in Vietnam rather than importing them). One to know for the news is *xã hội hóa*. It doesn't mean "socialise": it means bringing private or community money into a public service, such as schools or hospitals.

The spelling varies: *hoá* and *hóa* are both correct, and most news sites write *hóa*.

*Tính* works from the other side: *tính hiện đại* is modernity, the quality, while *hiện đại hóa* is the process of getting there. A few of these words are common in conversation, such as *số hóa* and *tự động hóa*. For everyday things people say *làm cho … hơn*: *làm cho đơn giản hơn*, make it simpler.

## Examples

- Tỉnh đặt mục tiêu cơ giới hóa 80% khâu thu hoạch lúa vào năm 2030. — The province aims to mechanise 80% of its rice harvesting by 2030.
- Quá trình đô thị hóa nhanh khiến nhiều kênh rạch bị san lấp. — Rapid urbanisation has led to many canals being filled in.
- Bộ đề xuất đơn giản hóa thủ tục cấp giấy phép xây dựng. — The ministry has proposed simplifying the procedure for building permits.
- Thư viện đã số hóa hơn 20.000 trang tài liệu cổ. — The library has digitised more than 20,000 pages of old documents.

## Compare

- [The quality of: tính + word (tính khả thi)](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/tinh-ity/): -ity / -ness

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