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• des
  des

  preposition

  used in French names as a contraction of de and the article les: François des Adrets.
• DES
  DES

  abbreviation

  diethylstilbestrol.
• -des
  -des

  a plural suffix appearing in loanwords from Greek.

des

¹ American  

[dey] / deɪ /

preposition

1. used in French names as a contraction of de and the article les: François des Adrets.

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DES ² American  

abbreviation

1. diethylstilbestrol.

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-des ³ American  

1. a plural suffix appearing in loanwords from Greek.

   proboscides.

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DES British  

abbreviation

1. Department of Education and Science

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DES Scientific  

/ dē′ē-ĕs′ /

1. Short for diethylstilbestrol. A synthetic nonsteroidal substance having estrogenic properties and prescribed between 1938 and 1971 to pregnant women with a history of miscarriage and other problems of pregnancy. It is no longer used due to the incidence of certain vaginal cancers and other disorders in the daughters of women so treated.

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Etymology

Origin of -des

< Greek, nominative plural of d- stem nouns

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

des DES

What is one to make of Emerson’s journal entry “I feel the centipede in me” after visiting Paris’s Jardin des Plantes in 1833?

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

The 33-year-old left back has signed a three-year deal at the Parc des Princes.

From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026

The theft also triggered an internal crisis at the Louvre, leading to the replacement of its president Laurence des Cars by Leribault.

From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026

The collection was unveiled at an elaborate event at the Abbaye des Vaux de Cernay, just outside Paris.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026

“This is M. Bouc, a director of the Compagnie des Wagons Lits. This gentleman is the doctor who examined the body.”

From "Murder on the Orient Express" by Agatha Christie

Brett Bezio, a spokesperson for DES, said the agency is focusing on reducing the state’s error rate to ensure “the program remains a stable resource for vulnerable Arizonans.”

From Salon ● Apr. 9, 2026

Last summer, DES also laid off about 500 employees in response to the elimination of federal grants and in anticipation of additional federal cuts.

From Salon ● Apr. 9, 2026

Although DECam was built to support DES, it also collected many images outside the main DES footprint.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 21, 2025

DES MOINES, Iowa — For Democrats in Iowa, this year’s Super Tuesday is a break from five decades of tradition in how the state gets its say in helping determine the presidential nominee.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 5, 2024

For example, in 1985, the Department of Treasury wanted to extend the validation of DES for use throughout the Treasury, the Federal Reserve System and member banks.

From Terminal Compromise: computer terrorism: when privacy and freedom are the victims: a novel by Winn Schwartau