deforestation

noun

de·​for·​es·​ta·​tion (ˌ)dē-ˌfȯr-ə-ˈstā-shən 

-ˌfär-

: the action or process of clearing of forests

also : the state of having been cleared of forests

Examples of deforestation in a Sentence

the deforestation of the island

Recent Examples on the Web

De la Sanch, an assistant professor of environmental science and studies at DePaul University, suggests the reemergence and spread of novel viruses like hantaviruses may be due to climate change, deforestation and urbanization. —Allison Kiehl, Chicago Tribune, 9 May 2026

Hotez attributes this to humans increasingly interacting with wildlife and their habitats, including through urbanization and deforestation. —Eduardo Cuevas, USA Today, 9 May 2026

In the Maya Biosphere Reserve, reforestation outpaced deforestation for the first time in 2019. —Anna Lello-Smith, New York Daily News, 9 May 2026

English settlers were drawn to North America in part because of the continent’s abundant supply of timber, a substitute for coal that deforestation had made prohibitively expensive in England. —Annie Persons, The Conversation, 7 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1874, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for deforestation

• abbreviation
• abomination
• acceleration
• accentuation
• accommodation
• accreditation
• acculturation
• accumulation
• acetylation
• adjudication
• administration
• adulteration

Kids Definition

deforestation

noun

de·​for·​es·​ta·​tion (ˌ)dē-ˌfȯr-ə-ˈstā-shən 

-ˌfär-

: the action or process of clearing an area of forests

also : the state of having been cleared of forests

deforest

(ˈ)dē-ˈfȯr-əst 

-ˈfär-

verb