deforestation

American  

[dee-fawr-uh-stay-shuhn, for-] / ˌdi fɔr əˈsteɪ ʃən, fɒr- /

noun

1. the clearing or severe thinning of a forest or other wooded area, leaving few or no trees.

   Most of the world’s deforestation is happening in Brazil.

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deforestation Scientific  

/ dē-fôr′ĭ-stā′shən /

1. The cutting down and removal of all or most of the trees in a forested area. Deforestation can erode soils, contribute to desertification and the pollution of waterways, and decrease biodiversity through the destruction of habitat.

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deforestation Cultural  

1. The process of destroying a forest and replacing it with something else. The term is used today to refer to the destruction of forests by human beings and their replacement by agricultural systems.

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Discover More

Deforestation is considered to be a main contributor to the greenhouse effect.

Etymology

Origin of deforestation

First recorded in 1870–75; deforest ( def. ) + -ation ( def. )

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Explanation

Deforestation is the clearing of trees, transforming a wooded area into cleared land. The first step in turning the wilderness into a shopping center is deforestation. You can see the word forest in deforestation. The prefix de- means "remove" and the suffix -ation signals "the act or state of." So deforestation is the act of removing a forest. First, the trees are chopped down, the wood shipped around the world for making products. Then the land is made smooth enough for homes, businesses, or farming. Today, in many places, laws limit the amount of deforestation.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

deforestation

Environmental groups say that would drive deforestation and more emissions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026

The figure, an area nearly 12 times larger than London, is a conservative estimate in part because haze has complicated satellite verification, said David Gaveau, founder of deforestation monitoring site Nusantara Atlas.

From Barron's ● Oct. 19, 2026

"Our goal is to achieve zero illegal deforestation by 2030," he said in a post on X on Friday.

From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026

Brazil's Environment Minister, Joao Paulo Capobianco, described the decline in Amazon deforestation as "absolutely stratospheric".

From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026

Slash-and-burn agriculture, industrial tropical deforestation and overgrazing are rampant today.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

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Related Words

• desertification
• erosion
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