de•rac•in•ate [dih-ras-uh-neyt] \(ˌ)dē-ˈra-sə-ˌnāt\ /dɪˈræs
əˌneɪt/ v
Definition
1. to pull up by or as if by the roots; uproot; extirpate,
2. to remove, as from a natural environment
3. to remove the racial or ethnic characteristics or influences from
deracination noun deracinated past participle deracinated past tense deracinates 3rd person singular present deracinating present participle
Synonyms: uproot; extirpate; eradicate
Related Words: radish, radical, eradicate
Examples
• After her parents moved her across the country for her father to take a new job, Janice felt deracinated, all of her friends left behind in her suburban habitat as she was forced to adapt to her new high-rise-dwelling life.
• To activate that process one must engage the risk that an Event has the power to deracinate one's identity and the entire system of ideas and guarantees grounding that self- reference.
Origin
Middle French desraciner, from des- de- + racine root, from Late Latin radicina, from Latin radic-, radix
First Known Use: 1599
Why This Word:
In an age of dislocations, when so many people feel deracinated, by force of violence or economic necessity, we need to have this word in our vocabulary - if only to make manifest the connection between deracination and eradication.
Word-E: A Word-A-Day
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