de-extinction

American  

[dee-ik-stingk-shuhn] / ˌdi ɪkˈstɪŋk ʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of bringing back an extinct life form or of producing a similar one by means of various techniques, such as cloning or genome modification using organic matter from preserved remains, or selective breeding to restore a trait that has become rare in the living population.

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Example Sentences

Colossal Biosciences insists that what they are doing with their de-extinction projects is conservation.

From Slate • Aug. 8, 2025

Whether we should see this as a neat bit of symbolism about de-extinction or a defiant, stubborn reference to industries that ought to have died out long ago is an open question.

From Salon • May 15, 2025

The biggest concern of the de-extinction community, Shapiro wrote then, was “to try to limit hyperbole so that our message could be heard by anyone who cared to hear it.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 24, 2025

Dr Beth Shapiro, a biologist from Colossal Biosciences, said that this feat does represent de-extinction, which she described as recreating animals with the same characteristics.

From BBC • Apr. 8, 2025

“This isn’t a Jurassic Park-style de-extinction project, but it will have a major impact,” said Durrell Kapan, a senior research fellow and the lead Academy researcher on the project.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 15, 2024