contaminate
Americanverb (used with object)
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contaminates,
present (3rd person singular)
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contaminated,
past participle, past
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contaminating
present participle
noun
adjective
verb
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to make impure, esp by touching or mixing; pollute
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to make radioactive by the addition of radioactive material
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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contaminantnoun
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contaminatornoun
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recontaminateverb (used with object)
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contaminableadjective
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contaminativeadjective
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contaminousadjective
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noncontaminableadjective
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noncontaminativeadjective
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self-contaminatingadjective
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uncontaminableadjective
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uncontaminatedadjective
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uncontaminativeadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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contaminatesimple
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contaminatessimple
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have contaminatedperfect
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has contaminatedperfect
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am contaminatingprogressive
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are contaminatingprogressive
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is contaminatingprogressive
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have been contaminatingperfect progressive
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has been contaminatingperfect progressive
Past
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contaminatedsimple
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had contaminatedperfect
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was contaminatingprogressive
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were contaminatingprogressive
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had been contaminatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of contaminate
1375–1425; late Middle English contaminaten < Latin contāminātus, past participle of contāmināre to defile, spoil, equivalent to con- con- + -tāminare, verbal derivative of *tāmen something touched < *tag-s-men, equivalent to tag-, variant stem of tangere to touch + -s-men resultative noun suffix; cf. examen
Explanation
The verb contaminate means the same as pollute. Whether it’s food, air, or water, when you contaminate something, you make it impure or hazardous. Contaminate comes from the Latin word contaminat-, meaning “made impure.” You can use the word to indicate that a hazardous substance has been introduced into something else, such as food that is contaminated with mold. It can also be used figuratively to describe the spoiling of a good thing, like one person's habit of gossiping that can contaminate a conversation among friends.
Vocabulary lists containing contaminate
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"It has a knock-on effect on wildlife. There's still a fire risk. Pollution can contaminate water. It affects everything, not just it looking nice."
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
Our water system’s decentralized, fragmented nature, perhaps a bit like our electoral system, is a double-edged sword, inasmuch as its vulnerabilities are atomized—at least a single hacker can’t contaminate all the water in the country.
From Slate ● Aug. 19, 2026
These blooms can contaminate seafood and create significant health hazards for people who consume or come into contact with affected marine environments.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 11, 2026
Heat also fuels toxic algae blooms containing domoic acid, which contaminate the anchovy and sardine populations.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
Only a few of De Soto’s pigs would have had to wander off to contaminate the forest.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Cyclospora is a parasite that contaminates leafy greens, berries and herbs.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 3, 2026
“If a worker contaminates lettuce, that lettuce will likely be eaten before it becomes infectious,” Todd said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
In Italy if one resident contaminates the wrong bin, the whole block can expect a fine, she explains.
From BBC ● Feb. 25, 2026
Diminish the flow, and saltwater contaminates the drinking water supply and the entire natural system that sustains human populations, not just wildlife.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2023
They say it does not do this if the vessel is soaked for two days in water, but it does, and I should think contaminates the stream it was soaked in into the bargain.
From Travels in West Africa by Mary H. Kingsley
People packed into overcrowded shelters, contaminated water and damaged health facilities were putting the population at greater risk of disease in the middle of the monsoon season, the UN agency said.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026
In the view of Stephen Petty, a chemical engineer and industrial hygienist, the data was also flawed because the testing company hired by Norfolk Southern took background samples in contaminated areas, among other things.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
The bees received pollen, water, and food contaminated with the pesticide methyl parathion.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 22, 2026
The attacks were inconsequential in one sense—there were no reports of contaminated water, though some systems suffered pressure drops and issued precautionary boil-water advisories.
From Slate ● Aug. 19, 2026
In the controversy that followed seizure of contaminated cranberries by the Food and Drug Administration, the fact that the chemical actually is cancer producing was widely challenged, even by many medical men.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
Researchers found that methane released in spacecraft exhaust may spread across the moon surprisingly quickly, potentially contaminating regions that could preserve ancient chemical clues about how life first emerged on Earth.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 13, 2026
On land, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Monday that Israeli strikes on Tehran fuel depots constituted "ecocide", contaminating soil and groundwater and causing long-term risks to people's health.
From Barron's ● Mar. 17, 2026
Damage to oil facilities "risks contaminating food, water and air – hazards that can have severe health impacts especially on children, older people, and people with pre existing medical conditions", said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
From BBC ● Mar. 10, 2026
The firestorm ravaged Pacific Palisades and Altadena, killing 31, destroying more than 16,000 structures and contaminating others with toxins and heavy metals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 20, 2026
HeLa cells are still contaminating other cultures and causing an estimated several million dollars in damage each year.
From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
