Words Starting With DE

DE Words: The Undoing Prefix

DE- is a Latin prefix meaning "down from," "away," or "reversing" — and English grabbed it with both hands. DECODE reverses a code. DEPART moves away. DESCEND goes down. DESTROY tears apart. The prefix attaches so freely to English verbs and nouns that DE- words fill entire dictionary pages. What makes DE- particularly interesting is that many DE- words have entered English at different times from different sources. DEBATE came through French in the 13th century. DECIPHER appeared in the 16th. DECODE is a 19th-century coinage. The prefix keeps producing new words because its meaning is so intuitive — slap DE- on almost any action and people understand you mean the reverse.

In crossword grids, DE- words are a solver's best friend. When you've placed D-E at the start and have six or seven blank squares after, your candidate list is still huge, but the prefix narrows the meaning. Clues involving removal, reversal, or decline almost always point to DE- answers. DEMOLISH, DEPLETE, DEFRAUD — the clue's tone guides you. Scrabble players should note that DE itself is not a valid play in North American tournament lists (TWL), though it works in international SOWPODS. Your best short DE plays are DEE, DEW, and DEN, all scoring modestly but opening the board for longer follow-ups.

Strategy: when you hold D, E, and several common letters, think bingo. Words like DESIGNED, DETECTED, DEPARTED, and DELICATE are all seven or eight tiles long and use high-frequency letters. That 50-point bingo bonus turns a mundane rack into a game-winner. For another prefix that reverses actions, explore words starting with U and the UN- family, or check words starting with R for RE- words that repeat rather than reverse. The words starting with H page covers another large word family with similar crossword utility.

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