De- | Meaning Of Prefix De- By Etymonline

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Origin and history of de-

de-

active word-forming element in English and in many verbs inherited from French and Latin, from Latin de "down, down from, from, off; concerning" (see de), also used as a prefix in Latin, usually meaning "down, off, away, from among, down from," but also "down to the bottom, totally" hence "completely" (intensive or completive), which is its sense in many English words.

As a Latin prefix it also had the function of undoing or reversing a verb's action, and hence it came to be used as a pure privative — "not, do the opposite of, undo" — which is its primary function as a living prefix in English, as in defrost (1895), defuse (1943), de-escalate (1964), etc. In some cases, a reduced form of dis-.

Entries linking to de-

de

Latin adverb and preposition of separation in space, meaning "down from, off, away from," and figuratively "concerning, by reason of, according to;" from PIE demonstrative stem *de- (see to). Also a French preposition in phrases or proper names, from the Latin word.

condescend(v.)

mid-14c., condescenden, in reference to God, a king., etc., "make gracious allowance" for human frailty, etc.; late 14c., "yield deferentially," from Old French condescendere (14c.) "agree, consent, give in, yield, come down from one's rights or claims," and directly from Late Latin condescendere "let oneself down, stoop," in Medieval Latin "be complaisant or compliant."

This is from assimilated form of Latin com "with, together" (see con-) + descendere "to descend," literally "climb down," from de "down" (see de-) + scandere "to climb" (from PIE root *skand- "jump;" see scale (v.1)).

The sense of "voluntarily waive ceremony or dignity proper to one's superior position or rank and willingly assume equality with inferiors" is attested from early 15c.

Generally a positive word in Middle English; the modern, negative sense is from the notion of a mere show or assumed air of condescending (compare sense evolution in patronize). Also in Middle English "give one's consent; come to mutual agreement; make a concession."

• de-accession
• deactivate
• deamination
• de-anglicize
• debag
• de-bamboozle
• debark
• debase
• debate
• debenture
• debilitate
• debilitation
• debilitative
• debility
• debit
• debridement
• debrief
• debris
• See All Related Words (381)

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debatelate 14c., "to quarrel, dispute," also "to combat, fight, make war" (senses now archaic), also "discuss, deliberate upon the pros and cons of," from Old French debatre (13c., Modern French débattre), originally "to fight," from de- "down, completely" (see de-) + batre "to beat," debenturemid-15c., "written acknowledgment of a debt" (early 15c. in Anglo-Latin), from Latin debentur "there are due" (said to have been the first word in formal certificates of indebtedness in Medieval Latin, debentur mihi "there are owing to me"), passive present indicative third-persodebilitationearly 15c., debilitacioun, "physical weakness, state of being enfeebled," from French débilitation (13c.) and directly from Latin debilitationem (nominative debilitatio) "a laming, crippling, weakening," noun of action from past-participle stem of debilitare "to weaken," from debgaminUn groupe d'enfants, de ces petits sauvages vanu-pieds qui ont de tout temps battu le pavé de Paris sous le nom éternel de...gamins, et qui, lorsque nous étions enfants aussi, nous ont jeté des pierres à tous, le soir, au sortir de classe, parce...[Hugo, "Notre-Dame de Paris"]...impasseSupposedly coined by Voltaire as a euphemism for cul de sac. ... dans l'impasse de St Thomas du Louvre; car j'appelle impasse..., Messieurs, ce que vous appelez cul-de-sac: je trouve qu'une rue ne ressemble ni à un cul ni à un sac: je vous prie de vous...servir du mot d'impasse, qui est noble, sonore, intelligible, nécessaire, au lieu de celui de cul, ......auto-da-fePortuguese auto-da-fé "judicial sentence, act of the faith," especially the public burning of a heretic, from Latin actus de...The elements are auto "a play," in law, "an order, decree, sentence," from Latin actus (see act (v.)), de "from, of" (see...de), fides "faith" (from PIE root *bheidh- "to trust, confide, persuade")....The Spanish form is auto-de-fe, but the Portuguese form took hold in English, perhaps through popular accounts of the executions...nomIt is used in various phrases in English, such as nom de guerre (1670s) "fictitious name used by a person engaged in some...action," literally "war name" and formerly in France a name taken by a soldier on entering the service, and nom de théâtre...Nom de plume (1823) "pseudonym used by a writer," literally "pen name," is a phrase invented in English in imitation of nom...de guerre....ministerc. 1300, "man consecrated to service in the Christian Church, an ecclesiastic;" also "an agent acting for a superior, one who acts upon the authority of another," from Old French menistre "servant, valet, member of a household staff, administrator, musician, minstrel" (12c.) and opportunitylate 14c., opportunitie, "fit, convenient, or seasonable time," from Old French opportunite (13c.) and directly from Latin opportunitatem (nominative opportunitas) "fitness, convenience, suitableness, favorable time," from opportunus "fit, convenient, suitable, favorable," from tfinemid-13c., "unblemished, refined, pure, free of impurities," also "of high quality, choice," from Old French fin "perfected, of highest quality" (12c.), a back-formation from finire or else from Latin finis "that which divides, a boundary, limit, border, end" (see finish (v.)); he

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‘cite’Page URL:https://www.etymonline.com/word/de-CopyHTML Link:<a href="https://www.etymonline.com/word/de-">Etymology of de- by etymonline</a>CopyAPA Style:Harper, D. (n.d.). Etymology of de-. Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved December 26, 2025, from https://www.etymonline.com/word/de-CopyChicago Style:Harper Douglas, "Etymology of de-," Online Etymology Dictionary, accessed December 26, 2025, https://www.etymonline.com/word/de-.CopyMLA Style:Harper, Douglas. "Etymology of de-." Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com/word/de-. Accessed 26 December, 2025.CopyIEEE Style:D. Harper. "Etymology of de-." Online Etymology Dictionary. https://www.etymonline.com/word/de- (accessed December 26, 2025).CopyRemove AdsAdvertisement

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TrendingDictionary entries near de-

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