1. made illegal or treated as criminal

1. past tense and past participle of criminalize; made illegal by law

Examples

• The government criminalized the possession of certain drugs.
• Many activities that were once legal have been criminalized over time.
• The new law criminalized texting while driving.
• Protesters argued that homelessness should not be criminalized.
• The criminalized behavior carried heavy penalties.
• Several countries have criminalized hate speech.
• The practice was criminalized in most states by 1950.