Formalisierten

Formalisierten is the simple past tense (Präteritum) form of the German verb formalisieren, meaning to make something formal, codified, or explicitly defined. It is used with plural subjects, for example: “Sie formaliserten den Prozess” (they formalized the process) or “Wir formaliserten die Verfahren” (we formalized the procedures). The corresponding past participle is formalisiert, which is used with auxiliary haben to form the perfect tense, as in “Sie haben die Verfahren formalisiert.” The participle can also function as an attributive participial adjective in phrases such as “die formalisierte Regel” or “die formalisierten Regeln,” describing procedures, rules, or structures that have been formalized.

Meaning and usage

Formalisieren refers to making something formal, explicit, and standardized, often by applying formal rules, standards, or a formal language. In practice, formalisierung occurs in administration, law, business, science, and software development, where informal or ad hoc approaches are replaced by precise definitions, processes, roles, and documentation. The concept is closely tied to codification, standardization, and governance, helping to reduce ambiguity and improve interoperability.

Context and related terms

In scholarly and technical contexts, Formalisierung denotes translating informal concepts into formal languages, models, or specifications. It is a central concept in logic, mathematics, and computer science, and is associated with formal specification languages and methods (for example, Z notation, VDM, or Alloy). The noun Formalisierung is often used alongside related terms such as Formalisierung, Formalität, and Standardisierung to describe systematic approaches to organizing information and procedures.