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
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.
Sterilization and chemical industry groups support the plan.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 13, 2026
Missouri-based Midwest Sterilization Corp. operates a sterilization plant in Laredo.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 3, 2022
Sterilization can pretty much ensure that they never do.
From Slate • Jul. 29, 2022
Sterilization would add perhaps $100 million to the price of a mission.
From New York Times • Oct. 5, 2015
He did so immediately: in 1933, less than five months after the passage of the Enabling Act, the Nazis enacted the Law for the Prevention of Genetically Diseased Offspring—commonly known as the Sterilization Law.
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.
