hygienic

American  

[hahy-jee-en-ik, hahy-jen-, -jee-nik] / ˌhaɪ dʒiˈɛn ɪk, haɪˈdʒɛn-, -ˈdʒi nɪk /

Also hygienical

adjective

1. conducive to good health; healthful; sanitary.

2. of or relating to hygiene.

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hygienic British  

/ haɪˈdʒiːnɪk /

adjective

1. promoting health or cleanliness; sanitary

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Usage

What does hygienic mean? Hygienic is commonly used to mean clean and sanitary. It can also mean promoting good health or related to or involving hygiene—a collection of practices to promote and preserve health, or a condition involving the use of such practices. In the most popular sense, hygiene refers to habitual actions that help you stay physically healthy, such as washing your hands and brushing your teeth. This sense of the word is especially used in phrases like personal hygiene and good hygiene. Personal hygiene is closely associated with cleanliness. Hygiene can also be applied to one’s mental well-being—mental hygiene is the practice of trying to maintain mental health through proactive behavior and treatment. The word hygiene is also used to refer to the science that deals with preserving health—both of individuals and the general public. Another word for this is hygienics. Example: Hygienic practices like washing your hands are the easiest ways to avoid illness.

Related Words

See sanitary.

Other Word Forms

• antihygienic adjective
• antihygienically adverb
• hygienically adverb
• nonhygienic adjective
• unhygienic adjective
• unhygienically adverb

Etymology

Origin of hygienic

First recorded in 1825–35; hygiene + -ic

Explanation

If something is hygienic it is good for your health or promotes healthy habits. Mothers are always spouting hygienic messages like "Wash your hands!" or "Brush your teeth!" Hygienic comes from the ancient Greek word hygies, meaning "healthy" or, literally, "living well." This state was represented by the Goddess Hygieia, the embodiment of health and cleanliness. Hygienic is often used indiscriminately with sanitary, though in fact sanitary implies a particular nose-wrinkling emphasis on proper sewage disposal and clean water that is only a part of the Greeks' original concept of a more comprehensive physical and mental well being.

Example Sentences

But he urged the country to place itself "in the service of law and justice" and condemned "troubling hygienic and sanitary conditions" for prisoners.

From Barron's • Apr. 23, 2026

Fire victims say they have experienced slow responses from insurance company claims handlers, been rotated to multiple adjusters, denied hygienic testing for toxic chemicals and been given lowball offers.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 18, 2025

The National Housing Federation, which represents housing associations, says that in social housing carpets have historically been removed between lets as standard practice, for practical and hygienic reasons.

From BBC • Nov. 27, 2024

It's also worth noting that soaking poultry in a brine of water and vinegar or citrus juice does not make it more hygienic.

From Salon • Nov. 27, 2023

Scientists attribute the significantly larger population in the Americas to a relatively disease-free society whose use of herbal medicine, surgery, dentistry, and hygienic and ritual bathing kept disease at bay.

From "An Indigenous People’s History of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

Related Words

• healthful
• sterile
• wholesome