v. [ad. F. stabiliser, f. L. stabili-s: see STABLE a. and -IZE.]
1. trans. To give stability to (a ship).
1861. W. Froude, Rolling of Ships (1862), 14. The ship, whether stabilised by breadth of beam or by deeply stowed ballast, would [etc.].
2. To give a stable character or value to.
1875. Whitney, Life & Growth Lang., ix. 158. Such forces … fairly dominate the history of speech. The language is stabilized.
1907. Daily Chron., 7 Jan., 3/7. The Mexican dollar, which formerly varied in value from 35 cents to 50 cents, has been stabilised at 50 cents gold.
1909. [see STABILIZING vbl. sb. below].
Hence Stabilizing vbl. sb.; Stabilized ppl. a.; Stabilization, the action or process of stabilizing.
1887. Mind, Oct., 602. With this ‘fixation of force’ goes the ‘stabilisation of matter.’ Psychologically, what corresponds to ‘fixed’ force or ‘stabilised’ matter is [etc.].
1909. Q. Rev., Oct., 533. The pernicious effects of the fluctuations of exchange demand the stabilising of the gold value of currency.
