de-emphasis

UK/diːˈɛmfəsɪs/

noun

A reduction in emphasis.

OriginEnglish emphasis ← Latin dē- ← Proto-Italic *dē →
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Meanings

nounde-emphasis (plural de-emphases)

plural de-emphases · alternative deemphasis · alternative deëmphasis

  1. A reduction in emphasis.
  2. communicationsA signal distortion, carried out at a receiver, in order to undo the effects of pre-emphasis at the transmitter.
  3. communicationsA reduction of the level of all bits except the first one after a transition.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*de
  2. Proto-Indo-European*déh₁
  3. Proto-Italic*dē
  4. Latindē
  5. Latindē-
  6. Englishde-
  7. Englishemphasis
  8. Englishde-emphasis

From de- + emphasis.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

de-emphasis. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/de-emphasis

MLA

“de-emphasis.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/de-emphasis. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “de-emphasis,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/de-emphasis.

Source: de-emphasis on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.