diastase

D2I1A1S1T1A1S1E1
/ˈdaɪəsteɪz/

noun

Any one of a group of enzymes which catalyse the breakdown of starch into maltose; mostly amylases (α-amylase and β-amylase).

OriginAncient Greek δῐᾰ́στᾰσῐς (dĭắstăsĭs) ← Proto-Hellenic *hístāmi ← Proto-Indo-European *stísteh₂ti →
Scrabble 9
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

noundiastase (plural diastases)

plural diastases

  1. biochemistryAny one of a group of enzymes which catalyse the breakdown of starch into maltose; mostly amylases (α-amylase and β-amylase).

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*dwóh₁
  2. Proto-Indo-European*trísinflu.
  3. Proto-Indo-European*dwís
  4. Ancient Greekδιά (diá)
  5. Ancient Greekδῐᾰ- (dĭă-)
  6. Proto-Indo-European*steh₂-
  7. Proto-Indo-European*stísteh₂ti
  8. Proto-Hellenic*hístāmi
  9. Ancient Greekῐ̔́στημῐ (hĭ́stēmĭ)
  10. Ancient Greekδῐῐ̈́στημῐ (dĭĭ̈́stēmĭ)
  11. Ancient Greekδῐᾰ́στᾰσῐς (dĭắstăsĭs)
  12. Englishdiastase

From Ancient Greek διάστασις (diástasis, “separation”).

More words from Ancient Greek

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Catalan diastasa
  • diastasaenzyme which catalyses the breakdown of starch into maltose
Finnish diastaasi
  • diastaasienzyme which catalyses the breakdown of starch into maltose
French diastase
  • diastaseenzyme which catalyses the breakdown of starch into maltose
Hungarian diasztáz
  • diasztázenzyme which catalyses the breakdown of starch into maltose
Italian maltina, diastasi
  • maltinaenzyme which catalyses the breakdown of starch into maltose
  • diastasienzyme which catalyses the breakdown of starch into maltose
Russian диаста́за
  • диаста́за (diastáza)enzyme which catalyses the breakdown of starch into maltose
Spanish diastasa
  • diastasaenzyme which catalyses the breakdown of starch into maltose
Ukrainian ді́астаза
  • ді́астаза (díastaza)enzyme which catalyses the breakdown of starch into maltose
Cite this entry
APA

diastase. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/diastase

MLA

“diastase.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/diastase. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “diastase,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/diastase.

Source: diastase on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.