contaminant
Americannoun
-
contaminants
plural
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of contaminant
1920–25; < Latin contāminant- (stem of contāmināns ), present participle of contāmināre. See contaminate, -ant
Vocabulary lists containing contaminant
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:
This included three uncapped mine shafts beneath the lagoon that were suggested as potential pathways for contaminant movement.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
According to the FDA, it takes action if the agency finds “that the level of a contaminant causes the food to be unsafe.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026
“In some ways it’s not a surprise, but the specific contaminant, cyclospora, is more unusual than E. coli and salmonella problems in leafy greens.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 30, 2026
It’s the first time the agency has designated pharmaceuticals as a contaminant group, according to an April press release.
From Salon ● Jul. 6, 2026
Harvard’s Robert Chang—whose widely used Chang Liver Cell line was listed as a HeLa contaminant on Gartler’s chart —glared from his seat.
From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot
As an “environmental rapid responder,” she tested air in homes and other sites for volatile organic compounds and other contaminants.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
When munitions are detonated underwater, the blast can spread contaminants through the surrounding environment.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
Now, parents might also be worrying about harmful contaminants in their kids’ snack foods.
From Slate ● Sep. 14, 2026
Gowen's investigation into Monsanto - which had factories in Newport and Wrexham - found it had been producing what he had called "some of the worst contaminants known to man" in the 1960s and '70s.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
For instance, people are made up of molecules of water and a few organic contaminants.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
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.
