institutionalized adj 1: officially placed in or committed to a specialized institution; "had hopes of rehabilitating the institutionalized juvenile delinquents" [syn: {institutionalised}] [ant: {noninstitutionalized}] 2: given the character of an institution or incorporated into a structured and usually well-established system; "institutionalized graft"; "institutionalized suicide as practiced in Japan" [syn: {institutionalised}]