pollute
verb (used with object)
to make foul or unclean, especially with harmful chemical or waste products; dirty.
had been polluting
-
past perfect progressiveof pollute.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
Other industries had been polluting so much that Louisiana had become the worst hazardous waste producer in the nation.
From The Guardian ● Sep. 7, 2016
But was the difference caused by two federal Superfund sites that had been polluting the area for years?
From Slate ● Mar. 19, 2013
He has been a hero to environmentalists since the mid-'70s, when he presided over a case involving charges that the Reserve Mining Co. had been polluting Lake Superior.
From Time Magazine Archive
