"removal or destruction of nitrates," 1883; see de- + nitrification. Related: Denitrate; denitrify.
Entries linking to denitrification
de-
active word-forming element in English and in many verbs inherited from French and Latin, from Latin de "down, down from, from, off; concerning" (see de), also used as a prefix in Latin, usually meaning "down, off, away, from among, down from," but also "down to the bottom, totally" hence "completely" (intensive or completive), which is its sense in many English words.
As a Latin prefix it also had the function of undoing or reversing a verb's action, and hence it came to be used as a pure privative — "not, do the opposite of, undo" — which is its primary function as a living prefix in English, as in defrost (1895), defuse (1943), de-escalate (1964), etc. In some cases, a reduced form of dis-.
nitrification n.
"process by which nitrogen in soil is oxidized to nitric acid," 1789, from French nitrification (1778), from nitrifier (1777), from nitre (see nitre). English nitrify "convert into nitre" is attested by 1800.