deka-

especially before a vowel, dek-

1. a combining form meaning “ten,” used in the names of metric units which are ten times the size of the unit denoted by the base word.

   dekaliter.

deka-

combining form

1. variants of deca-

Word History and Origins

Origin of deka-¹

From Greek deka-, combining form of déka ten

Example Sentences

“We look for a cluster of symptoms,” says Dr. Aniruddha Deka, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Rush University in Chicago.

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“Addiction involves craving a substance, feeling kind of high or intoxicated on something and compulsively using it despite negative consequences,” says Deka.

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The length of time someone takes an antidepressant depends on if it’s his or her first episode or not, says Deka.

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If someone is still going through a hard time or has had episodes before, he may be advised to stay on the medication, Deka says.

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“It could be more than two years depending on the situation,” says Deka.

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When To Use

What does deka- mean?

Deka- is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “ten.” It is primarily used in the names of metric units to indicate that the measure is ten times the size of the unit denoted by the base word.Deka- comes from Greek déka, meaning “ten.” The related combining form deca- also means "ten”; deka- is almost exclusively used for the naming of metric units, as opposed to deca-, which is used in a variety of terms.What are variants of deka-?When combined with words or word elements that begin with a vowel, deka- becomes dek-, as in dekare. When combined with words or word elements that begin with a vowel, deca- becomes dec-, as in decathlon.A related Latin-origin form is deci-, from Latin decimus, “tenth.”Want to know more? Check out our Words That Use articles for dec-, deca-, and deci-.