sanitizer
Americannoun
Usage
What does sanitizer mean? Sanitizer is a substance or fluid designed to kill germs on skin and objects. To sanitize means to clean something by removing the dirt or destroying the germs on it. Food service operations use sanitizer to clean their equipment so that food doesn’t become contaminated with bacteria or other stuff that shouldn’t be in it. Sanitizer also refers to household products (especially hand sanitizer) that are used to prevent the spread of disease by killing germs on surfaces and skin. Example: We use industrial-grade sanitizer in the restaurant kitchen to keep our equipment free of germs.
Etymology
Origin of sanitizer
Explanation
Sanitizer is a product that's used to make something extremely clean. Using hand sanitizer is one good way to help keep germs from spreading. Sanitizer doesn't just clean, it sanitizes, or kills viruses and bacteria. Both words come from sanitary and its Latin root, sanitas, which means "health." If you're cleaning a kitchen or bathroom, you might want to use a sanitizer spray on germy surfaces, and when you can't wash your hands with soap and water, hand sanitizer is the way to go!
Vocabulary lists containing sanitizer
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.
I tried all six of its products, from the Hand Sanitizer, $6, to the Everyday Laundry Detergent, $14.
From New York Times • Mar. 24, 2021
On many tables, where you may expect to find a bottle of olive oil or hot sauce, there’s Amass Botanic Hand Sanitizer, a spicy-scented cleanser to keep the restaurant’s guests germ free.
From New York Times • Jul. 22, 2020
According to ABC 13, the portal was made by a company called Sanitizer 2 You, which is owned by John Vale, who also owns the restaurant.
From Fox News • Jul. 19, 2020
Number one doctor recommended PURELL� Instant Hand Sanitizer kills 99.99% of most common germs that may cause illness.
From Time Magazine Archive
If you're not a gel junkie either, Avant's Instant Hand Sanitizer � which rivals Purell's strength, with its 60% ethanol content � might change your mind.
From Time Magazine Archive
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.
