decarboxylate

[dee-kahr-bok-suh-leyt]

verb (used with object)

Chemistry.

decarboxylated, decarboxylating 

1. to remove the carboxyl group from (an organic compound).

Other Word Forms

• decarboxylation noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of decarboxylate¹

First recorded in 1920–25; de- + carboxylate

Example Sentences

Unless you decarboxylate them — that is, apply heat to remove the acid — THC will not be intoxicating.

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Lysine and ornithine have very similar molecular structures, and the authors found that Spe1, the enzyme that decarboxylates ornithine, can also decarboxylate lysine to generate cadaverine.

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If you have a kitchen stove, you can decarboxylate your weed just fine.

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