dec.

¹

abbreviation

1. (in prescriptions) pour off.

dec.

²

abbreviation

1. deceased.

2. decimeter.

3. declension.

4. decrease.

5. Music.,  decrescendo.

dec-

³

1. variant of deca- before a vowel.

   decathlon.

Dec.

⁴

abbreviation

1. December.

dec.

¹

abbreviation

1. deceased

2. music decrescendo

Dec

²

abbreviation

1. December

Word History and Origins

Origin of dec.¹

From the Latin word dēcantā

Example Sentences

The offer is valid until Dec. 31.

From Los Angeles Times

The sheriff’s department said in an email that it “takes these allegations seriously,” and that on Dec. 2 it “initiated an internal investigation into the incident. Three employees have been relieved of duty pending the outcome of the investigation.”

From Los Angeles Times

“She feels horrible about all of this. Nobody wants to be in the chain of causation,” Geragos said, adding that he will present evidence of mitigating circumstances at her Dec. 10 sentencing.

From Los Angeles Times

The $2,000 federal credit for heat pumps, as well as for hot water heaters that have a built-in heat pump expires Dec. 31.

From Los Angeles Times

He then went on to recount when he and Moore met privately at the Army-Navy football game in Landover, Md., in Dec. 2024.

From Salon

When To Use

What does dec- mean?

Dec- is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “ten.” It appears in a small range of terms.Dec- comes from the Greek déka, meaning “ten.” The word December is related to this root via the Latin equivalent, decem. In fact, what is now the twelfth month of the year was once the tenth month of the early Roman calendar. Learn more at our entry for December.What are variants of dec-?Dec- is a variant of deca-, which loses its -a- when combined with words or word elements beginning with vowels. A similar prefix is deka-, which is reserved for the naming of metric units, and a related Latin-origin form is deci-, from Latin decimus, “tenth.”Want to know more? Check out our Words That Use articles for deca-, deci-, and deka-.