1 debouch | Definition of debouch

debouch

verb
de·​bouch | \ di-ˈbau̇ch How to pronounce debouch (audio) , -ˈbüsh How to pronounce debouch (audio) , dÄ“-\
debouched; debouching; debouches

Definition of debouch

transitive verb

: to cause to emerge : discharge

intransitive verb

1 : to march out into open ground troops debouching from the town
2 : emerge, issue rivers debouching into the sea

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Other Words from debouch

debouchment \ di-​ˈbau̇ch-​mÉ™nt How to pronounce debouchment (audio) , -​ˈbüsh-​ , dÄ“-​ \ noun

Did You Know?

Debouch first appeared in English in the 18th century. It derives from a French verb formed from the prefix de- ("from") and the noun "bouche" ("mouth"), which itself derives ultimately from the Latin bucca ("cheek"). "Debouch" is often used in military contexts to refer to the action of troops proceeding from a closed space to an open one. It is also used frequently to refer to the emergence of anything from a mouth, such as water passing through the mouth of a river into an ocean. The word's ancestors have also given us the adjective "buccal" ("of or relating to the mouth") and the noun "embouchure" (the mouthpiece of a musical instrument or the position of the mouth when playing one).

First Known Use of debouch

1745, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

History and Etymology for debouch

French déboucher, from dé- de- + bouche mouth, from Old French boche, from Latin bucca cheek

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More from Merriam-Webster on debouch

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with debouch