de

[ duh; French duh; Spanish de; Portuguese di ]

preposition

from; of (used in French, Spanish, and Portuguese personal names, originally to indicate place of origin): Comte de Rochambeau; Don Ricardo de Aragón.

Origin of de

From French, Portuguese, Spanish, from Latin dē

Other definitions for de' (2 of 5)

de'

[ duh; Italian de ]

preposition

dei (used in Italian names as an elided form of dei): de' Medici.

Other definitions for DE (3 of 5)

abbreviation

Delaware (approved especially for use with zip code).
destroyer escort.

Other definitions for de- (4 of 5)

de-

a prefix occurring in loanwords from Latin (decide); also used to indicate privation, removal, and separation (dehumidify), negation (demerit; derange), descent (degrade; deduce), reversal (detract), intensity (decompound).: Compare di-², dis-¹.

Origin of de-

⁴

Middle English <Latin dē-, prefixal use of dē (preposition) from, away from, of, out of; in some words, <French <Latin dē- or dis-dis-¹

Other definitions for D.E. (5 of 5)

D.E.

abbreviation

Doctor of Engineering.
driver education.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use de in a sentence

This must refer to an octave scale of the form b c d e f g a b, consisting of the two tetrachords b-e and e-a, and the tone a-b.
The Modes of Ancient Greek Music | David Binning Monro
That is to say, the tetrachord b c d e is not written , but : and d e♭ f g is not , but .
The Modes of Ancient Greek Music | David Binning Monro
If the genus is Chromatic, as M. Ruelle is disposed to think, they are g-a-a♯-b-d-e-f.
The Modes of Ancient Greek Music | David Binning Monro
This same bipartition, however, is noticed in another passage of the Politikus, p. 258 D-E.
Plato and the Other Companions of Sokrates, 3rd ed. Volume III (of 4) | George Grote
This and the following are put as derivatives from the Herakleitean theory (p. 411 D-E).
Plato and the Other Companions of Sokrates, 3rd ed. Volume III (of 4) | George Grote

British Dictionary definitions for de (1 of 4)

de¹

De, before a vowel d' or before a vowel D'

/ (də) /

of; from: occurring as part of some personal names and originally indicating place of origin: Simon de Montfort; D'Arcy; de la Mare

Origin of de

from Latin dē; see de-

British Dictionary definitions for de (2 of 4)

de²

the internet domain name for

Germany

British Dictionary definitions for DE (3 of 4)

abbreviation for

(formerly in Britain) Department of Employment
Delaware

British Dictionary definitions for de- (4 of 4)

de-

prefix forming verbs and verbal derivatives

removal of or from something specified: deforest; dethrone
reversal of something: decode; decompose; desegregate

departure from: decamp

Origin of de-

⁴

from Latin, from dē (prep) from, away from, out of, etc. In compound words of Latin origin, de- also means away, away from (decease); down (degrade); reversal (detect); removal (defoliate); and is used intensively (devote) and pejoratively (detest)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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