1. to transfer (a business, industry, or service) from government or public ownership back to private ownership
Usage: economics; politics

Examples

• The government decided to reprivatize the airline after years of public ownership.
• Many Eastern European countries reprivatized state-owned enterprises in the 1990s.
• The city council voted to reprivatize the water utility system.
• Critics argued that reprivatizing healthcare would reduce access for low-income families.
• The company was nationalized during the crisis and reprivatized once the economy stabilized.
• Shareholders welcomed the decision to reprivatize the formerly state-run telecommunications company.