“Legalization” or “Legalisation”—What's the difference?

Usage by country

Where each spelling is used

Of the 12 countries below, 7 prefer “legalization” and 4 prefer “legalisation”. Usage levels are out of 100; the more common spelling in each country is in bold.

Usage level out of 100 (if available).
Country	legalization	legalisation	Preference
United States	100	0	“legalization”
United Kingdom	24	76	“legalisation”
India	65	35	“legalization”
Philippines	98	2	“legalization”
Canada	88	12	“legalization”
Australia	25	75	“legalisation”
Liberia	0	0	Not enough data
Ireland	32	68	“legalisation”
New Zealand	36	64	“legalisation”
Jamaica	90	10	“legalization”
Trinidad & Tobago	84	16	“legalization”
Guyana	100	0	“legalization”

Usage

Examples in context

Real sentences for each spelling. Hover an example to copy it.

“legalization”

The legalization of medical marijuana will be…
The broad legalization of Cannabis in this fashion…
…when the debate over the legalization of same-sex marriage was raging.
…security and increasing opportunities for legalization among those living in the…
…of a newsletter promoting rape legalization and Holocaust denial, were charged…
…among other things, proposed the legalization of abortion and marijuana, opposed…
…– horticulturist, activist for the legalization of marijuana
O'Leary supports the legalization and regulation of marijuana.
…elections Alegre, he opposes the legalization of abortion and gay marriage,…
…dangerous and unpredictable and that legalization would encourage drug abuse and…

“legalisation”

…she has stated that its legalisation is a matter of "historic
In 1991, the legalisation of opposition political parties led…
…forward in 2019 with the legalisation of same-sex marriage.
Fisher has consistently opposed the legalisation of same-sex marriage.
…campus in favour of cannabis legalisation.
Legalisation by Westminster (1982 and 2003)
The legalisation of motor vehicles for personal…
Since the legalisation of same-sex marriages, both sets…
…in the world following Denmark's legalisation of same-sex partnership registration in…
…lent increasing support towards the legalisation of marijuana, with senators and…

Examples are Wikipedia snippets under the CC ShareAlike 3.0 license.

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