adulterate

American  

[uh-duhl-tuh-reyt, uh-duhl-ter-it, -tuh-reyt] / əˈdʌl təˌreɪt, əˈdʌl tər ɪt, -təˌreɪt /

verb (used with object)

adulterated, adulterating

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.

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adjective

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

2. adulterous.

adulterate British  

verb

1. (tr) to debase by adding inferior material

   to adulterate milk with water

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adjective

1. adulterated; debased or impure

2. a less common word for adulterous

Usage

What does adulterate mean? To adulterate means to make something impure or alter its original form by adding materials or elements that aren’t usually part of it, especially inferior ones.Adulterate is commonly used in the context of food preparation and manufacturing in reference to the contamination of food products with additives that make them impure in some way. There are laws against this, especially when the ingredients added may be harmful to people’s health. It can also be used in a less serious way to refer to adding ingredients thought to be unnecessary, as in I would never adulterate coffee with sugar or cream.Adulterate is also commonly used in a more general way to refer to any action that alters something in a way that people think makes it impure or inferior.The noun form of adulterate is adulteration. The past tense form adulterated can also be used as an adjective, as in Officials confiscated the adulterated foods. Less commonly, adulterate itself can also be used as an adjective in the same way.Example: Some sellers were caught adulterating the spices by adding fillers.

Other Word Forms

• adulteration noun
• adulterator noun
• unadulterate adjective

Etymology

Origin of adulterate

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

Example Sentences

It is one thing to alter the competition, another to adulterate or corrupt it - La Liga accepts the first suggestion, but not the second.

From BBC • Oct. 22, 2025

Now, he can rest easy: There's no economic incentive to adulterate his product.

From Salon • Aug. 2, 2023

A clever entrepreneur could establish a weight-loss program entirely on the basis of alerting people to the larvae and dry rot and beetle eggs that adulterate their favorite foods.

From New York Times • Dec. 27, 2021

Little five-spice seasoning or herbs adulterate this meat.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 14, 2021

But, to return to the subject, we could adulterate the coal oil and give them full measurement, if that would please you better.”

From The Bail Jumper by Stead, Robert J. C.

Related Words

• contaminate