diff --git a/.github/workflows/ruby.yml b/.github/workflows/ruby.yml
index 754f5fd..dcbcbe3 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ruby.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ruby.yml
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     strategy:
       matrix:
-        ruby-version: [ '3.2', '3.3', '3.4' ]
+        ruby-version: [ '3.4', '4.0' ]
 
     steps:
     - uses: actions/checkout@v4
diff --git a/.github/workflows/ruby_gem.yml b/.github/workflows/ruby_gem.yml
index 70dfe38..6fd72f1 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ruby_gem.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ruby_gem.yml
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     strategy:
       matrix:
-        ruby-version: [ '3.2', '3.3', '3.4' ]
+        ruby-version: [ '3.4', '4.0' ]
 
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
@@ -32,10 +32,10 @@ jobs:
 
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
-      - name: Set up Ruby 3.4
+      - name: Set up Ruby 4.0
         uses: ruby/setup-ruby@v1
         with:
-          ruby-version: 3.4
+          ruby-version: 4.0
           bundler-cache: true
 
       - name: Publish to RubyGems
diff --git a/.rubocop.yml b/.rubocop.yml
index 2cd31fb..25f22b4 100644
--- a/.rubocop.yml
+++ b/.rubocop.yml
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 AllCops:
   NewCops: enable
   SuggestExtensions: false
-  TargetRubyVersion: 3.2
+  TargetRubyVersion: 3.4
 
 Gemspec/DevelopmentDependencies:
   EnforcedStyle: gemspec
@@ -15,4 +15,10 @@ Metrics/BlockLength:
     - spec/**/*.rb
 
 Style/MixinUsage:
-  Enabled: false
\ No newline at end of file
+  Enabled: false
+
+Metrics/AbcSize:
+  Max: 20
+
+Metrics/MethodLength:
+  Max: 20
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/.ruby-version b/.ruby-version
index 3ec370e..6bbb7ff 100644
--- a/.ruby-version
+++ b/.ruby-version
@@ -1 +1 @@
-3.4.5
\ No newline at end of file
+ruby-4.0.5
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/Gemfile b/Gemfile
index 05f5590..08439c2 100644
--- a/Gemfile
+++ b/Gemfile
@@ -5,7 +5,9 @@ source 'https://rubygems.org'
 # Specify your gem's dependencies in simple_symbolize.gemspec
 gemspec
 
-gem 'rake', '~> 13.3'
+gem 'rake', '~> 13.4'
 gem 'rspec', '~> 3.13'
-gem 'rubocop', '~> 1.80'
+gem 'rubocop', '~> 1.88'
 gem 'simplecov', '~> 0.22'
+
+gem 'irb', '~> 1.18'
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 55c9bc2..3f8ea1c 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -111,6 +111,22 @@ end
 
 ## Updates!
 
+### V6.0.0
+
+#### Dropped support for Ruby < 3.4
+
+Ruby 3.2 reached EOL in 2026, and Ruby 3.3 will reach EOL in 2027.
+As such this gem no longer supports versions older than 3.4.
+
+#### Inline configuration
+
+You can now prevent chars being removed inline:
+
+```ruby
+SimpleSymbolize.symbolize('Hello World!', strip_chars: false)
+# => :hello_world!
+```
+
 ### V5
 
 #### Dropped support for Ruby < 3.2
diff --git a/lib/simple_symbolize.rb b/lib/simple_symbolize.rb
index 8f0cec0..74f5357 100644
--- a/lib/simple_symbolize.rb
+++ b/lib/simple_symbolize.rb
@@ -31,17 +31,20 @@ def self.translate
   #
   # @example Symbolize a string using the symbolize method
   #   SimpleSymbolize.symbolize("hello world!") #=> :hello_world
-  def self.symbolize(obj)
+  def self.symbolize(obj, strip_chars: true)
     return obj unless valid_input?(obj)
 
     obj = if SimpleSymbolize.translations.handle_camel_case
-            snakeize(obj)
+            snakeize(obj, strip_chars:)
           else
             obj.to_s
                .downcase
                .gsub(Regexp.union(SimpleSymbolize.translations.underscore), '_')
-               .gsub(Regexp.union(SimpleSymbolize.translations.remove), '')
+               .then do |str|
+                 strip_chars?(strip_chars) ? str.gsub(Regexp.union(SimpleSymbolize.translations.remove), '') : str
+               end
           end
+
     obj.to_sym
   end
 
@@ -51,10 +54,10 @@ def self.symbolize(obj)
   #
   # @example Elementize a string using the elementize method
   #   SimpleSymbolize.elementize("hello world!") #=> "helloWorld"
-  def self.elementize(obj)
+  def self.elementize(obj, strip_chars: true)
     return obj unless valid_input?(obj)
 
-    symbolize(obj).to_s
+    symbolize(obj, strip_chars:).to_s
   end
 
   # Turns a String object into a camelCase Symbol.
@@ -63,10 +66,10 @@ def self.elementize(obj)
   #
   # @example Camelize a string using the camelize method
   #   SimpleSymbolize.camelize("hello world!") #=> :helloWorld
-  def self.camelize(obj)
+  def self.camelize(obj, strip_chars: true)
     return obj unless valid_input?(obj)
 
-    first, *rest = elementize(obj).split('_')
+    first, *rest = elementize(obj, strip_chars:).split('_')
     return obj if first.nil?
 
     assemble_came_case_string(first, rest)
@@ -78,12 +81,12 @@ def self.camelize(obj)
   #
   # @example Snakeize an object using the snakeize method
   #   SimpleSymbolize.snakeize('Hello World!') #=> :hello_world
-  def self.snakeize(obj)
+  def self.snakeize(obj, strip_chars: true)
     return obj unless valid_input?(obj)
 
     obj.to_s
        .gsub(Regexp.union(SimpleSymbolize.translations.underscore), '_')
-       .gsub(Regexp.union(SimpleSymbolize.translations.remove), '')
+       .then { |str| strip_chars?(strip_chars) ? str.gsub(Regexp.union(SimpleSymbolize.translations.remove), '') : str }
        .gsub(/([a-z\d])([A-Z])/, '\1_\2')
        .gsub(/([A-Z]+)([A-Z][a-z])/, '\1_\2')
        .downcase
@@ -125,5 +128,9 @@ def assemble_came_case_string(first, rest)
       word = first + rest.join
       word.to_sym
     end
+
+    def strip_chars?(obj)
+      obj.to_s.downcase == 'true'
+    end
   end
 end
diff --git a/lib/simple_symbolize/core_ext/string/symbolize.rb b/lib/simple_symbolize/core_ext/string/symbolize.rb
index ba7fafd..071cf59 100644
--- a/lib/simple_symbolize/core_ext/string/symbolize.rb
+++ b/lib/simple_symbolize/core_ext/string/symbolize.rb
@@ -10,26 +10,26 @@ module CoreExt
     module String
       # @example Symbolize a string using the String object method
       #   "hello world!".symbolize #=> :hello_world
-      def simple_symbolize
-        SimpleSymbolize.symbolize(self)
+      def simple_symbolize(strip_chars: true)
+        SimpleSymbolize.symbolize(self, strip_chars:)
       end
 
       # @example Turns a String into a camelCase Symbol
       #   "Hello World".simple_camelize => :helloWorld
-      def simple_camelize
-        SimpleSymbolize.camelize(self)
+      def simple_camelize(strip_chars: true)
+        SimpleSymbolize.camelize(self, strip_chars:)
       end
 
       # @example Symbolizes a String then calls #to_s
       #   "helloWorld".simple_elementize => 'hello_word'
-      def simple_elementize
-        SimpleSymbolize.elementize(self)
+      def simple_elementize(strip_chars: true)
+        SimpleSymbolize.elementize(self, strip_chars:)
       end
 
       # @example Turns a String into it's snake_case equivalent
       #   "helloWorld".simple_snakeize => 'hello_word'
-      def simple_snakeize
-        SimpleSymbolize.snakeize(self)
+      def simple_snakeize(strip_chars: true)
+        SimpleSymbolize.snakeize(self, strip_chars:)
       end
     end
   end
diff --git a/lib/simple_symbolize/core_ext/symbol/symbolize.rb b/lib/simple_symbolize/core_ext/symbol/symbolize.rb
index b949341..6e60a29 100644
--- a/lib/simple_symbolize/core_ext/symbol/symbolize.rb
+++ b/lib/simple_symbolize/core_ext/symbol/symbolize.rb
@@ -10,26 +10,26 @@ module CoreExt
     module Symbol
       # @example Symbolize a string using the String object method
       #   :hello_world!.symbolize #=> :hello_world
-      def simple_symbolize
-        SimpleSymbolize.symbolize(self)
+      def simple_symbolize(strip_chars: true)
+        SimpleSymbolize.symbolize(self, strip_chars:)
       end
 
       # @example Turns a String into a camelCase Symbol
       #   :hello_world.simple_camelize => :helloWorld
-      def simple_camelize
-        SimpleSymbolize.camelize(self)
+      def simple_camelize(strip_chars: true)
+        SimpleSymbolize.camelize(self, strip_chars:)
       end
 
       # @example Symbolizes a String then calls #to_s
       #   :helloWorld!.simple_elementize => 'hello_word'
-      def simple_elementize
-        SimpleSymbolize.elementize(self)
+      def simple_elementize(strip_chars: true)
+        SimpleSymbolize.elementize(self, strip_chars:)
       end
 
       # @example Turns a String into it's snake_case equivalent
       #   :helloWorld.simple_snakeize => :hello_word
-      def simple_snakeize
-        SimpleSymbolize.snakeize(self)
+      def simple_snakeize(strip_chars: true)
+        SimpleSymbolize.snakeize(self, strip_chars:)
       end
     end
   end
diff --git a/lib/simple_symbolize/version.rb b/lib/simple_symbolize/version.rb
index 25748fc..415c0d7 100644
--- a/lib/simple_symbolize/version.rb
+++ b/lib/simple_symbolize/version.rb
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 # frozen_string_literal: true
 
 module SimpleSymbolize
-  VERSION = '5.0.0'
+  VERSION = '6.0.0'
 end
diff --git a/simple_symbolize.gemspec b/simple_symbolize.gemspec
index dbf2e38..8d82844 100644
--- a/simple_symbolize.gemspec
+++ b/simple_symbolize.gemspec
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ Gem::Specification.new do |spec|
   spec.homepage      = 'https://github.com/dvla/simple-symbolize'
 
   spec.license       = 'MIT'
-  spec.required_ruby_version = Gem::Requirement.new('>= 3.2')
+  spec.required_ruby_version = Gem::Requirement.new('>= 3.4')
 
   spec.metadata['homepage_uri'] = spec.homepage
   spec.metadata['source_code_uri'] = spec.homepage
diff --git a/spec/camelize_spec.rb b/spec/camelize_spec.rb
index 8346f3f..339c4bf 100644
--- a/spec/camelize_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/camelize_spec.rb
@@ -26,4 +26,22 @@
     SimpleSymbolize.translations.camel_case_acronyms = ['gb']
     expect(SimpleSymbolize.camelize('from gb')).to eq(:fromGB)
   end
+
+  context 'strip_chars option' do
+    it 'strips chars by default' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.camelize('Hello World!')).to eq(:helloWorld)
+    end
+
+    it 'does not strip chars when strip_chars is false' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.camelize('Hello World!', strip_chars: false)).to eq(:helloWorld!)
+    end
+
+    it 'continues to strip chars when strip_chars is true' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.camelize('Hello World!', strip_chars: true)).to eq(:helloWorld)
+    end
+
+    it 'does not strip chars when strip_chars is not a boolean' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.camelize('Hello World!', strip_chars: 'not_a_boolean')).to eq(:helloWorld!)
+    end
+  end
 end
diff --git a/spec/core_ext/string_spec.rb b/spec/core_ext/string_spec.rb
index a3c6c20..a405692 100644
--- a/spec/core_ext/string_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/core_ext/string_spec.rb
@@ -9,6 +9,10 @@
     it 'symbolizes the String' do
       expect('This is quite a test'.simple_symbolize).to eq(:this_is_quite_a_test)
     end
+
+    it 'allows for a strip_chars option' do
+      expect('This is quite a test!'.simple_symbolize(strip_chars: false)).to eq(:this_is_quite_a_test!)
+    end
   end
 
   context 'simple_snakeize method' do
@@ -19,6 +23,10 @@
     it 'returns a snake_case Symbol' do
       expect('ThisIsQuiteATest'.simple_snakeize).to eq(:this_is_quite_a_test)
     end
+
+    it 'allows for a strip_chars option' do
+      expect('This is quite a test!'.simple_snakeize(strip_chars: false)).to eq(:this_is_quite_a_test!)
+    end
   end
 
   context 'simple_elementize method' do
@@ -29,6 +37,10 @@
     it 'elementizes the String' do
       expect('This is quite a test'.simple_elementize).to eq('this_is_quite_a_test')
     end
+
+    it 'allows for a strip_chars option' do
+      expect('This is quite a test!'.simple_elementize(strip_chars: false)).to eq('this_is_quite_a_test!')
+    end
   end
 
   context 'simple_camelize method' do
@@ -39,5 +51,9 @@
     it 'returns a snake_case Symbol' do
       expect('ThisIsQuiteATest'.simple_camelize).to eq(:thisIsQuiteATest)
     end
+
+    it 'allows for a strip_chars option' do
+      expect('This is quite a test!'.simple_camelize(strip_chars: false)).to eq(:thisIsQuiteATest!)
+    end
   end
 end
diff --git a/spec/core_ext/symbol_spec.rb b/spec/core_ext/symbol_spec.rb
index 63bc57c..db5c8e4 100644
--- a/spec/core_ext/symbol_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/core_ext/symbol_spec.rb
@@ -9,6 +9,10 @@
     it 'symbolizes the String' do
       expect('This is quite a test'.simple_symbolize).to eq(:this_is_quite_a_test)
     end
+
+    it 'allows for a strip_chars option' do
+      expect('This is quite a test!'.simple_symbolize(strip_chars: false)).to eq(:this_is_quite_a_test!)
+    end
   end
 
   context 'simple_snakeize method' do
@@ -19,6 +23,10 @@
     it 'returns a snake_case Symbol' do
       expect('ThisIsQuiteATest'.simple_snakeize).to eq(:this_is_quite_a_test)
     end
+
+    it 'allows for a strip_chars option' do
+      expect('This is quite a test!'.simple_snakeize(strip_chars: false)).to eq(:this_is_quite_a_test!)
+    end
   end
 
   context 'simple_elementize method' do
@@ -29,6 +37,10 @@
     it 'elementizes the String' do
       expect('This is quite a test'.simple_elementize).to eq('this_is_quite_a_test')
     end
+
+    it 'allows for a strip_chars option' do
+      expect('This is quite a test!'.simple_elementize(strip_chars: false)).to eq('this_is_quite_a_test!')
+    end
   end
 
   context 'simple_camelize method' do
@@ -39,5 +51,9 @@
     it 'returns a snake_case Symbol' do
       expect('ThisIsQuiteATest'.simple_camelize).to eq(:thisIsQuiteATest)
     end
+
+    it 'allows for a strip_chars option' do
+      expect('This is quite a test!'.simple_camelize(strip_chars: false)).to eq(:thisIsQuiteATest!)
+    end
   end
 end
diff --git a/spec/elementize_spec.rb b/spec/elementize_spec.rb
index 09b170f..5fd4856 100644
--- a/spec/elementize_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/elementize_spec.rb
@@ -14,4 +14,22 @@
     expect(SimpleSymbolize.elementize([])).to eq([])
     expect(SimpleSymbolize.elementize('')).to eq('')
   end
+
+  context 'strip_chars option' do
+    it 'strips chars by default' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.elementize('Hello World!')).to eq('hello_world')
+    end
+
+    it 'does not strip chars when strip_chars is false' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.elementize('Hello World!', strip_chars: false)).to eq('hello_world!')
+    end
+
+    it 'continues to strip chars when strip_chars is true' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.elementize('Hello World!', strip_chars: true)).to eq('hello_world')
+    end
+
+    it 'does not strip chars when strip_chars is not a boolean' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.elementize('Hello World!', strip_chars: 'not_a_boolean')).to eq('hello_world!')
+    end
+  end
 end
diff --git a/spec/simple_symbolize_spec.rb b/spec/simple_symbolize_spec.rb
index 8d90f21..66922b7 100644
--- a/spec/simple_symbolize_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/simple_symbolize_spec.rb
@@ -196,4 +196,22 @@
       expect(SimpleSymbolize.translations.underscore).not_to include('^')
     end
   end
+
+  context 'strip_chars option' do
+    it 'strips chars by default' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.symbolize('Hello World!')).to eq(:hello_world)
+    end
+
+    it 'does not strip chars when strip_chars is false' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.symbolize('Hello World!', strip_chars: false)).to eq(:hello_world!)
+    end
+
+    it 'continues to strip chars when strip_chars is true' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.symbolize('Hello World!', strip_chars: true)).to eq(:hello_world)
+    end
+
+    it 'does not strip chars when strip_chars is not a boolean' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.symbolize('Hello World!', strip_chars: 'not_a_boolean')).to eq(:hello_world!)
+    end
+  end
 end
diff --git a/spec/snakeize_spec.rb b/spec/snakeize_spec.rb
index 00673e4..67cf1ce 100644
--- a/spec/snakeize_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/snakeize_spec.rb
@@ -15,4 +15,22 @@
     expect(SimpleSymbolize.snakeize([])).to eq([])
     expect(SimpleSymbolize.snakeize('')).to eq('')
   end
+
+  context 'strip_chars option' do
+    it 'strips chars by default' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.snakeize('Hello World!')).to eq(:hello_world)
+    end
+
+    it 'does not strip chars when strip_chars is false' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.snakeize('Hello World!', strip_chars: false)).to eq(:hello_world!)
+    end
+
+    it 'continues to strip chars when strip_chars is true' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.snakeize('Hello World!', strip_chars: true)).to eq(:hello_world)
+    end
+
+    it 'does not strip chars when strip_chars is not a boolean' do
+      expect(SimpleSymbolize.snakeize('Hello World!', strip_chars: 'not_a_boolean')).to eq(:hello_world!)
+    end
+  end
 end