adulterate

[ verb uh-duhl-tuh-reyt; adjective uh-duhl-ter-it, -tuh-reyt ]
See synonyms for adulterate on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object),a·dul·ter·at·ed, a·dul·ter·at·ing.
  1. to debase or make impure by adding inferior materials or elements; use cheaper, inferior, or less desirable goods in the production of (any professedly genuine article): to adulterate food.

adjective
  1. impure or debased; cheapened in quality or purity.

Origin of adulterate

1
1580–90; <Latin adulterātus mixed, adulterated (past participle of adulterāre), equivalent to ad-ad- + -ulter (perhaps combining form of alter other; see alter) + -ātus-ate1

Other words from adulterate

  • a·dul·ter·a·tor, noun
  • un·a·dul·ter·ate, adjective

Words that may be confused with adulterate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use adulterate in a sentence

  • Flour and other cereal foods are sometimes adulterated with some cheap substitutes, as bran or sawdust.

    A Civic Biology | George William Hunter

British Dictionary definitions for adulterate

adulterate

verb(əˈdʌltəˌreɪt)
  1. (tr) to debase by adding inferior material: to adulterate milk with water

adjective(əˈdʌltərɪt, -ˌreɪt)
  1. adulterated; debased or impure

  2. a less common word for adulterous

Origin of adulterate

1
C16: from Latin adulterāre to corrupt, commit adultery, probably from alter another, hence to approach another, commit adultery

Derived forms of adulterate

  • adulteration, noun
  • adulterator, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012