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debark1

[dih-bahrk]
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verb (used with or without object)
  1. to disembark.
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Origin of debark1

1645–55; < French débarquer, equivalent to dé- dis-1 + barque bark3 + -er infinitive suffix
Related formsde·bar·ka·tion [dee-bahr-key-shuh n] /ˌdi bɑrˈkeɪ ʃən/, noun

debark2

[dee-bahrk]
verb (used with object)
  1. to remove the bark from (a log).
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Origin of debark2

First recorded in 1735–45; de- + bark2
Related formsde·bark·er, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for debark

Historical Examples

  • There was no warning; the crew were ordered to debark, a bomb was placed on board, and the vessel was blown up and sank in flames.

    The Story of the Great War, Volume VI (of VIII)

    Various

  • He then, instead of giving the anxiously expected order to advance, commanded the whole to debark.

  • Coasting along the shore, they came at last to an open roadstead where they could debark.

  • The pale, helpless soldiers had been debark'd, and lay around on the wharf and neighborhood anywhere.

  • By reason of this precaution it was more than an hour after the steamer arrived before her passengers began to debark.

British Dictionary definitions for debark

debark1

verb
  1. a less common word for disembark
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Derived Formsdebarkation (ˌdiːbɑːˈkeɪʃən), noun

Word Origin

C17: from French débarquer, from dé- dis 1 + barque barque

debark2

verb
  1. (tr) to remove the bark from (a tree)
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Word Origin

C18: from de- + bark 2
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

Word Origin and History for debark

v.

1650s, from French débarquer (16c.), from de- (Old French des-; see dis-) + barque "bark" (see bark (n.2)).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper