Meanings
verbbiodegrade (third-person singular simple present biodegrades, present participle biodegrading, simple past and past participle biodegraded)
present singular third person biodegrades · participle present biodegrading · participle past biodegraded · past biodegraded
- To decompose as a result of biological action, especially by microorganisms.
PLA decomposes slowly, but plants can help the material biodegrade five to seven times faster in the soil, Kato says.
2026 February 17, Simmone Shah, “Biodegradable Beads Are Helping Mardi Gras Go Green”, in TIME, archived from the original on 25 Feb 2026
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*gʷeyh₃-
- Ancient Greekβῐ́ος (bĭ́os)
- Ancient Greekβῐο- (bĭo-)
- Englishbio-
- Englishdegrade
- Englishbiodegrade
Translations
Irish bith-dhíghrádaigh
- bith-dhíghrádaighto decompose as a result of biological action
Italian biodegradare, biodegradarsi
- biodegradareto decompose as a result of biological action
- biodegradarsito decompose as a result of biological action
Polish biodegradować się
- biodegradować sięto decompose as a result of biological action
Spanish biodegradar
- biodegradarto decompose as a result of biological action
Vietnamese tự hủy, tự huỷ
- tự hủyto decompose as a result of biological action
- tự huỷto decompose as a result of biological action
Welsh bioddiraddio
- bioddiraddioto decompose as a result of biological action
Cite this entry
APA
biodegrade. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/biodegrade
MLA
“biodegrade.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/biodegrade. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “biodegrade,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/biodegrade.
Source: biodegrade on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.