contaminate
Americanverb (used with object)
noun
adjective
verb
-
to make impure, esp by touching or mixing; pollute
-
to make radioactive by the addition of radioactive material
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
contaminantnoun
-
contaminatornoun
-
recontaminateverb (used with object)
-
contaminableadjective
-
contaminativeadjective
-
contaminousadjective
-
noncontaminableadjective
-
noncontaminativeadjective
-
self-contaminatingadjective
-
uncontaminableadjective
-
uncontaminatedadjective
-
uncontaminativeadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
contaminatesimple
-
contaminatessimple
-
have contaminatedperfect
-
has contaminatedperfect
-
am contaminatingprogressive
-
are contaminatingprogressive
-
is contaminatingprogressive
-
have been contaminatingperfect progressive
-
has been contaminatingperfect progressive
Past
-
contaminatedsimple
-
had contaminatedperfect
-
was contaminatingprogressive
-
were contaminatingprogressive
-
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
A Long Walk to Water
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Bud, Not Buddy
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
100 SAT words Beginning with "C"
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
Paiva also hopes to examine whether materials besides methane, including compounds released from spacecraft components such as paint and rubber, could contaminate scientifically important lunar sites.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 13, 2026
The waste can also clog the aquatic vegetation where the fish would feed and breed, and contaminate the water on which they depend.
From Barron's ● May 20, 2026
They wonder if toxic materials could leach into the soil and contaminate groundwater, if not while the solar site is operational, then some decades in the future, when it reaches the end of its life.
From Salon ● Apr. 27, 2026
The seemingly limitless proliferation of cases in which lawyers have been caught letting fictitious AI-generated legal citations contaminate their briefs continues to amaze.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2026
So could radiations from certain rocks, or arsenic washed out of soil or rocks to contaminate food or water supplies.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
“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
The production of PFAS-coated pans also exposes factory workers to those chemicals, and the wastewater from factories like those are what contaminates waterways, landfills and, in some cases, farmland.
From Salon ● Dec. 9, 2024
He said other contaminates — food waste, dyes, adhesives, etc. — could also potentially cause problems.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2024
It has been found by experiment that a candle contaminates more air than a man.
From A Lecture on the Preservation of Health by Garnett, Thomas
The report also said free-range egg production should be discouraged in affected areas, and that there should be periodic potato testing in contaminated places too.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
Once the technologies are sufficiently developed for commercial use, they could help industries treat contaminated wastewater before it reaches rivers, lakes, and oceans.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 20, 2026
It would involve continued isolation of contaminated areas to prevent student contact and the removal of toxins through phytoremediation, an emerging technology that uses plants known to absorb toxins from the soil.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2026
It also said the Food and Drug Administration was “working directly with the supplier,” which it did not name, to figure out whether contaminated lettuce went elsewhere.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 18, 2026
Little by little he became contaminated with the anxiety.
From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Before the virus was identified, it spread from herd to herd, infecting cattle and contaminating their surroundings.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 23, 2026
It follows concerns that the poisons are killing songbirds, which like to line their nests with dog and cat hair, as well as contaminating rivers and coastal waters and killing aquatic life.
From BBC ● May 3, 2026
The disaster unleashed toxic sludge into the Kafue River, contaminating land and leaving residents without clean water.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 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
Mr. Crouch took a step backward, freeing himself from contact with the elf, whom he was surveying as though she were something filthy and rotten that was contaminating his over-shined shoes.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
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.
