Etymology

biodegradation

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Today it means: The decomposition of any material by microorganisms. Full definition →

English degradation ← Ancient Greek βῐο- (bĭo-) ← Proto-Indo-European *gʷeyh₃-
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*gʷeyh₃-
  2. Ancient Greekβῐ́ος (bĭ́os)
  3. Ancient Greekβῐο- (bĭo-)
  4. Englishbio-
  5. Englishdegradation
  6. English todaybiodegradation

From bio- + degradation.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.