pollute

American  

[puh-loot] / pəˈlut /

verb (used with object)

polluted, polluting

1. to make foul or unclean, especially with harmful chemical or waste products; dirty.

   to pollute the air with smoke.

   Synonyms:

   befoul, soil

   Antonyms:

   purify

2. to make morally unclean; defile.

   Synonyms:

   deprave, debase, corrupt, vitiate, contaminate, taint

   Antonyms:

   purify

3. to render ceremonially impure; desecrate.

   to pollute a house of worship.

4. Informal. to render less effective or efficient.

   The use of inferior equipment has polluted the company's service.

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pollute British  

/ pəˈluːt /

verb

1. to contaminate, as with poisonous or harmful substances

2. to make morally corrupt or impure; sully

3. to desecrate or defile

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Other Word Forms

• nonpolluting adjective
• polluter noun
• pollutive adjective
• unpolluting adjective

Etymology

Origin of pollute

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English polute, from Latin pollūtus, past participle of polluere “to soil, defile,” equivalent to pol-, assimilated variant of por- “forth, forward” (variant of prefix per- ), here marking completed action + -lū- base of -luere (akin to lutum “mud, dirt,” lustrum “muddy place”) + -tus past participle suffix; see per-

Explanation

Pollute is a verb that means to make something dirty or impure. You can pollute a river by pouring waste into it, or you can pollute your body by eating way too much candy. Pollute comes from the Latin word pollut-, meaning “soiled.” When you pollute something, it's soiled or contaminated, often by something poisonous. You might have heard the word pollution — pollution is the stuff that pollutes the environment. The word pollute can be used more figuratively to describe something that corrupts or degrades. For example, reading articles about celebrity weddings can pollute your mind.

Example Sentences

They send the message that “you can pollute with impunity,” said Carly Phillips, a senior scientist with the Union of Concerned Scientists.

From Salon • Apr. 10, 2026

Apart from climate concerns, strikes on energy infrastructure, oil tankers and military targets pollute the surrounding air and water and spread highly toxic chemicals far and wide, experts say.

From Barron's • Mar. 15, 2026

Fossil fuels pollute the air when they are extracted and when they are burned, but the steps between those two points involve far more than familiar scenes of drilling equipment and smoke-filled power plants.

From Science Daily • Nov. 20, 2025

But the use of low-earth orbit satellites for mobile communications has been criticised by astronomers, who say they pollute the night sky and make it more difficult to spot potential hazards such as asteroids.

From BBC • Oct. 30, 2025

Even today there is no greater venom among hardcore classical music champions than that reserved for so-called 'crossover’ artists who dare to pollute the pure waters of the classical repertoire by appealing to the masses.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

Related Words

• contaminate
• foul
• infect
• poison
• stain
• taint
• violate