de-extinct

English

Etymology

From de- +‎ extinct.

Verb

de-extinct (third-person singular simple present de-extincts, present participle de-extincting, simple past and past participle de-extincted)

1. (biology, neologism, transitive) To return an extinct species back into the world.

   Synonym: unextinct

   • 2016, Helen Pilcher, Bring Back the King: the new science of de-extinction, Bloomsbury Sigma, →ISBN, page 16:

     In 2012, Australian researchers briefly de-extincted an amphibian they dubbed ‘the Lazarus frog’ (Rheobatrachus silus), an unusual creature with one hell of a party trick (to find out what it was, you’ll have to read Chapter 5).

   • 2018, Tim Flannery, Europe: A Natural History, page 308:

     From a technical perspective, de-extincting a Neanderthal would be the easiest task of all, for human reproduction is extremely well understood, and the Neanderthal genome is known.

   • 2020, “Life Finds A Way”, in Jonathan Elmore, editor, Fiction and the Sixth Mass Extinction, Rowman & Littlefield, →ISBN:

     Revive & Restore, a branch of the Long Now Foundation, is currently attempting to de-extinct the passenger pigeon in a project called The Great Comeback.

Related terms

• de-extinction