'de-tint' originates from the Latin prefix 'de-' meaning 'remove' or 'reverse', combined with the word 'tint', which derives from Old French 'teinte' (from Latin 'tingere' meaning 'to dye').

'tint' changed from Old French word 'teinte' (itself from Latin 'tingere') and entered Middle English as 'tint'; the prefix 'de-' was later attached in modern English to form the verb 'de-tint'.

Initially, the root 'tint' was associated with 'to dye' or 'add color'; over time the modern formation 'de-tint' came to mean 'to remove or reduce that added color', i.e., to undo a tint.