de

¹

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

preposition

1. from; of (used in French, Spanish, and Portuguese personal names, originally to indicate place of origin):

   Comte de Rochambeau; Don Ricardo de Aragón.

DE

²

abbreviation for

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

de'

³

[ duh; Italian de ]

preposition

1. dei (used in Italian names as an elided form of dei ):

   de' Medici.

de-

⁴

1. 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.

D.E.

⁵

abbreviation for

1. Doctor of Engineering.
2. driver education.

de

¹

the internet domain name for

1. Germany

de

²

/ də /

(no translation)

1. of; from: occurring as part of some personal names and originally indicating place of origin

   de la Mare

   Simon de Montfort

   D'Arcy

DE

³

abbreviation for

1. (formerly in Britain) Department of Employment
2. Delaware

de-

⁴

prefix forming verbs and verbal derivatives

1. removal of or from something specified

   dethrone

   deforest

2. reversal of something

   decode

   decompose

   desegregate

3. departure from

   decamp

Word History and Origins

Origin of de¹

From French, Portuguese, Spanish, from Latin dē

Origin of de²

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of de¹

from Latin dē; see de-

Origin of de²

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 )

Example Sentences

In the last year, her fusion exercise class has attracted a cult following and become de rigueur among the celebrity set.

From The Daily Beast

They tried to continue their getaway but had to quickly abandon their vehicle on the Rue de Meaux in the 19th.

From The Daily Beast

Humans spent a long time domesticating cattle, and what they were trying to do, in essence, was de-domesticate them.

From The Daily Beast

The band was still on its way back as De Blasio and his wife departed.

From The Daily Beast

Yet even after the funeral protest, de Blasio was booed and heckled while addressing a new class of recruits as well.

From The Daily Beast

Madame de Condillac stood watching him, her face composed, her glance cold.

From Project Gutenberg

Then the door opened, the portiere was swept aside, and Anselme announced "Monsieur de Garnache."

From Project Gutenberg

San Antonio de Bexar lies in a fertile and well-irrigated valley, stretching westward from the river Salado.

From Project Gutenberg

One evening, while he was thus engaged, he observed de Patinos and Duke Wharton enter together.

From Project Gutenberg

Without any known cause of offence, a tacit acknowledgement of mutual dislike was shewn by Louis and de Patinos.

From Project Gutenberg