Decomputerize

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To remove computer control or influence from a process, system, or operation; to revert automated or computerized tasks back to manual or analog methods; to disconnect or eliminate computing technology in an environment
2. To reverse the integration of digital technology in an activity by stripping away computer-based components; to replace electronic processing with human or mechanical means; to cease the use of software or hardware for managing functions
3. To eliminate reliance on computers within a function or setting by deactivating or withdrawing computational support; to transition from computerized automation to traditional non-digital practices; to undo the application of computer-based controls or data systems

Etymology: "Decomputerize" is a straightforward formation: the verb "computerize" (to equip something with computers or convert it to computer-based operation) with the reversing prefix "de-", meaning to undo or remove what the base describes. "Computerize" itself dates from the mid-20th century, when computers moved from scientific labs into offices and businesses, and "decomputerize" followed the same pattern once firms began reverting systems to manual or simpler processes. Because the word is a transparent compound of a prefix and a verb, its meaning is clear from its parts, and it has few older senses to trace. It is a modern coinage built on standard English word-formation patterns, so the history is mostly a matter of how the base word arose and how the prefix was applied.

Synonyms: demagnetize, deactivate, disassemble, decommission, dismantle

Antonyms: computerize, digitize, automate, activate, assemble