Definition

To remove hydrogen from a compound or molecule.

Example

The chemist needed to dehydrogenate the substance to create a new compound.

Tense Forms

Conversation

I just read about how to dehydrogenate certain compounds in chemistry class.

That sounds interesting! What does it actually do?

Basically, it removes hydrogen from molecules to create new ones.

Got it! That must have a lot of applications in science.

Synonyms & Antonyms

Root Explanation

Dehydrogenate → It is formed from "de-" (meaning removal), "hydrogen" (from Greek "hydro" meaning water and "genes" meaning creator or producer), and "-ate" (a suffix used in chemistry to indicate a process). The word describes the process of removing hydrogen from a compound.

Memory Tip

Think of 'removing' ('de-') 'hydrogen' from a substance — that's what dehydrogenate means.

Visually Confused Words