utilizar
verbCEFR B2
What does “utilizar” mean in English?
to utilise, to employ
to utilise, to employ (utilizar + noun — use deliberately and purposefully, often in formal register)
Example sentences
El sistema utiliza algoritmos de inteligencia artificial para optimizar la asignación de recursos en tiempo real.
The system uses artificial intelligence algorithms to optimise the allocation of resources in real time.
El informe recomienda utilizar fuentes primarias siempre que sea posible para garantizar la fiabilidad del análisis.
The report recommends using primary sources wherever possible to ensure the reliability of the analysis.
Las empresas más innovadoras han sabido utilizar la crisis como una oportunidad de transformación.
The most innovative companies have known how to use the crisis as an opportunity for transformation.
How to use it
Utilizar means 'to use' or 'to utilise'. It is more formal than usar and implies purposeful, deliberate application: utilizar recursos, utilizar una metodología, utilizar herramientas. In everyday speech, usar is more common; in academic, technical, and professional writing, utilizar is preferred. The noun is utilización (utilisation/use). Near-synonyms: emplear (employ/use — equally formal), aplicar (apply — often for methods or rules), hacer uso de (make use of — even more formal).
Common mistake
Utilizar and usar are often interchangeable but utilizar is always the safer formal register choice. In instructions and manuals, utilizar dominates. Emplear is a precise synonym: 'se emplean métodos cualitativos' = 'qualitative methods are used'. Don't use utilizar in casual spoken contexts where usar is more natural: 'usa el ascensor, no las escaleras'.