sterilization
Americannoun
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the act of sterilizing.
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the condition of being sterilized.
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the destruction of all living microorganisms, as pathogenic or saprophytic bacteria, vegetative forms, and spores.
noun
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the act or procedure of sterilizing or making sterile
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the state of being sterile; sterilized condition
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The procedure of destroying all microorganisms in or on a given environment, such as a surgical instrument, in order to prevent the spread of infection. This is usually done by using heat, radiation, or chemical agents.
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Any of various surgical procedures intended to eliminate the capacity to reproduce in humans or animals.
Other Word Forms
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Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of sterilization
Vocabulary lists containing sterilization
Microbiology - High School
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Microbiology - Middle School
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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:
The staffers were also early adopters of telemedicine; the deadly nature of the Ebola virus required intense sterilization of anything that came into contact with a patient.
From Slate ● May 14, 2026
They are located in Ontario and Vernon and operated by the company Sterigenics, which provides industrial sterilization technology for medical devices and other commercial products.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 13, 2026
The action around ethylene oxide would affect about 90 commercial sterilization facilities owned and operated by approximately 50 companies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 13, 2026
Together, the data showed that long-term hormonal contraception and permanent surgical sterilization are linked to an average lifespan increase of about ten percent.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 16, 2026
On March 29, 1924, with Priddy’s help, the Virginia Senate authorized eugenic sterilization within the state as long as the person to be sterilized had been screened by the “Boards of Mental-health institutions.”
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
In spring 2021, the Legislature apologized to all Vermonters and their families and descendants who were harmed by state-sanctioned eugenics policies and practices that led to sterilizations.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 27, 2023
And several past presidents supported voluntary and compulsory eugenic sterilizations at some point in their careers.
From Science Magazine ● Jan. 24, 2023
Some patients who have been denied sterilizations have turned to therapists like Barbara DeBree, who has a private practice in Helena and writes letters to providers attesting that the patients have thought through their decisions.
From Salon ● Jul. 26, 2022
Wade, something she thought would never happen, she asked her health insurance provider if it covered sterilizations.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2022
For a while, it seemed as if the future of eugenic sterilizations in America depended on the foggy impressions of a nurse who had been handed a cranky baby without toys.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
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.
