tainted

American  

[teyn-tid] / ˈteɪn tɪd /

adjective

1. infected, contaminated, corrupted, or spoiled.

   An outbreak of salmonella poisoning linked to eating tainted ground turkey has resulted in several deaths.

2. affected by a trace of something bad, offensive, or harmful.

   We strongly urge you to distance your charitable organization from this discredited project and its tainted money.

3. (of the name, reputation, etc., of a person or group) sullied or tarnished.

   Having such a program available to these students could help fix the tainted reputation many feel our school has earned.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of taint.

Other Word Forms

• untainted
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of tainted

taint ¹ ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Explanation

If something's tainted, it's ruined or spoiled. If you leave milk on the counter overnight, it could be tainted. But a charity that uses its funds to buy board members tropical vacations could also be considered tainted. The adjective tainted describes a person or thing that's been touched by rot or corruption. Many think that young minds can become morally tainted by violence on TV. If evidence at a crime scene is handled improperly, it could be considered tainted and can't be used at trial. You've probably heard about foods like spinach and peanut butter being recalled because they have been potentially tainted with salmonella.

Example Sentences

Andrew Evans, chair of the campaign group Tainted Blood, told the hearing many victims and their families had been left feeling "betrayed and disappointed".

From BBC • May 7, 2025

Brustein published his first book on Shakespeare, “The Tainted Muse: Prejudice and Presumption in Shakespeare and His Time,” in 2009.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 29, 2023

“When polio vaccine backfired / Tainted batches killed 10 and paralyzed 164,” San Francisco Chronicle, April 25, 2005.

From Slate • Sep. 28, 2023

Tainted water and soil and dirty indoor air put Chad, the Central African Republic and Niger as the three countries with the most pollution-related deaths, according to data adjusted for population.

From Reuters • May 17, 2022

Here from distempered heavens erewhile arose A piteous season, with the full fierce heat Of autumn glowed, and cattle-kindreds all And all wild creatures to destruction gave, Tainted the pools, the fodder charged with bane.

From The Georgics by Virgil

Related Words

• contaminated
• corrupted
• dirty
• infected
• polluted
• rotten