decarbonize

verb

de·​car·​bon·​ize (ˌ)dē-ˈkär-bə-ˌnīz 

decarbonized; decarbonizing; decarbonizes

transitive verb

1

: to remove carbon from (something)

It's usually not necessary to dismantle the engine to decarbonize it anymore.

—Allen D. Berrien

2

: to reduce the levels of carbon emissions (such as carbon dioxide) caused by or involved in (something, such as a facility, process, or organization)

… we must decarbonize the energy supply by developing forms of power that emit less greenhouse gas or none at all.

—Daniel Ben-Ami

[Steve] Cohen is confident that we will be able to decarbonize our economy in time to avoid catastrophic climate impacts.

—Renee Cho

intransitive verb

: to reduce the production of carbon emissions

Certainly, people at Airbus say they need to decarbonize, and research on battery technology for electric planes has been disappointing.

—Ned Potter

decarbonizer noun

Examples of decarbonize in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Carbon capture integration: ExxonMobil estimates decarbonizing AI data centers could represent 20% of the total addressable market for CCS by 2050. —Güney Yıldız, Forbes.com, 14 Jan. 2026

In contrast, the latter is focused on decarbonizing the remaining supply—navigating the nuances of biomass, electrification and waste heat recovery. —Alexandra Harrell, Sourcing Journal, 11 Dec. 2025

Related investment in agritech might also boost production of biofuel, potentially making air travel greener and helping to decarbonize other sectors that are difficult to electrify. —Yew-Poh Mak, Fortune, 26 Nov. 2025

Amazon plans to deploy the TM-Q in several major cities as part of its broader strategy to decarbonize last-mile delivery. —IEEE Spectrum, 18 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

International Scientific Vocabulary

First Known Use

1821, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for decarbonize

• actualize
• antagonize
• apologise
• apologize
• capitalize
• categorize
• characterize
• commercialize
• conceptualize
• contrariwise
• criminalize
• decentralize