1. (of a country or its citizens) send a group of settlers to (a place) and establish political control over it: "the Greeks colonized Sicily and southern Italy"
▪ come to settle among and establish political control over (the indigenous people of an area): "they sought to discredit the peoples they were colonizing"
▪ appropriate (a place or domain) for one's own use: "a small town in a part of the Hudson Valley fast being colonized by weekenders"
▪ (of a plant or animal) establish itself in (an area):"mussels can colonize even the most inhospitable rock surfaces"
