Standard Lemma guide

deforest

name · verb · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /dɪˈfɒɹɪst/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: D IH0 F AO1 R AH0 S T Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

name

Meaning 1

A surname from French, equivalent to English Forest or Woods, equivalent to the modern French surname Deforet.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

name

Meaning 2

A male given name transferred from the surname, equivalent to English Forest.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

name

Meaning 3

Alternative form of DeForest.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: alt-of, alternative

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

To clear (an area) of forest.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

verb

Meaning 5

To disafforest (remove legal status as forest).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: archaic, transitive

Topics: law

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

verb

Meaning 6

remove the trees from

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • The landscape was deforested by the enemy attacks

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: disforest, disafforest

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: clear

History

Etymology

Rare French surname, from de (“from”) + forest. Compare Deforrest, Defrees, Defreest.

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *de Proto-Indo-European *-h1 Proto-Indo-European *déh1 Proto-Italic *dē Latin dē Latin dē-der. English de- English forest English deforest From de- + forest.

Across languages

Translations

28 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: desboscar — to clear an area of forest
  • Catalan: desforestar — to clear an area of forest
  • Danish: rydde for skov — to clear an area of forest
  • Danish: afskove — to clear an area of forest
  • Dutch: ontbossen — to clear an area of forest
  • Esperanto: senarbarigi — to clear an area of forest
  • Finnish: kaataa metsää — to clear an area of forest
  • Finnish: poistaa metsää — to clear an area of forest
  • Finnish: hävittää metsää — to clear an area of forest
  • French: déboiser — to clear an area of forest
  • French: déforester — to clear an area of forest
  • Galician: deforestar — to clear an area of forest
  • German: entwalden — to clear an area of forest
  • Ido: desarborizar — to clear an area of forest
  • Latin: deforēstō — to clear an area of forest
  • Macedonian: обесшумува (obesšumuva) — to clear an area of forest
  • Norwegian Bokmål: avskoge — to clear an area of forest
  • Piedmontese: disbosché — to clear an area of forest
  • Polish: wylesiać — to clear an area of forest
  • Polish: wylesić — to clear an area of forest
  • Portuguese: desflorestar — to clear an area of forest
  • Portuguese: deflorestar — to clear an area of forest
  • Russian: обезле́сить (obezlésitʹ) — to clear an area of forest
  • Spanish: deforestar — to clear an area of forest
  • Spanish: clarear — to clear an area of forest
  • Swedish: avskoga — to clear an area of forest
  • Swedish: skövla — to clear an area of forest
  • Turkish: ormansızlaştırmak — to clear an area of forest