sterilize

American  

[ster-uh-lahyz] / ˈstɛr əˌlaɪz /

especially British, sterilise

verb (used with object)

sterilized, sterilizing

1. to destroy microorganisms in or on, usually by bringing to a high temperature with steam, dry heat, or boiling liquid.

2. to destroy the ability of (a person or animal) to reproduce by removing the sexual organs or inhibiting their functions.

3. to make (land) barren or unproductive.

4. Informal. to delete or remove anything comprising or damaging from.

   to sterilize a government document before releasing it to the press.

5. Informal. to isolate or completely protect from unwanted, unauthorized, or unwholesome activities, attitudes, influences, etc..

   You can't sterilize children against violence.

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sterilize British  

/ ˈstɛrɪˌlaɪz /

verb

1. (tr) to render sterile; make infertile or barren

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Other Word Forms

• presterilize
  verb (used with object)
• resterilize
  verb (used with object)
• self-sterilized
  adjective
• sterilizability
  noun
• sterilizable
  adjective
• sterilizer
  noun
• unsterilized
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of sterilize

First recorded in 1685–95; sterile + -ize

Explanation

When you sterilize something, you make it completely clean and free from any contaminant. It's important to sterilize tools, hands, and furniture in hospitals so germs don't get spread between patients. People who make their own jam and pickles need to sterilize the jars first, and when you feed a tiny baby it's important to sterilize the bottles. Whenever you need to make sure something is as clean as possible, you should sterilize it. The earliest meaning of sterilize is still in use, too: to "make infertile," or to make it impossible for an organism to reproduce or have a baby.

Example Sentences

Around the United States, cities are increasingly warming to an idea that once induced gags: Sterilize wastewater from toilets, sinks and factories, and eventually pipe it back into homes and businesses as tap water.

From Washington Post • Nov. 19, 2021

Sterilize Me, Please Why is so difficult for young women to get their tubes tied?

From Slate • Jul. 9, 2012

Sterilize in hot water bath for 20 minutes.

From Ontario Teachers' Manuals: Household Science in Rural Schools by Ontario. Ministry of Education

Sterilize forty minutes if using hot-water-bath outfit or condensed-steam outfit; thirty minutes if using water-seal or five-pound steam-pressure outfit; twenty-five minutes if using pressure-cooker outfit.

From Every Step in Canning by Gray, Grace Viall

Sterilize a needle; thread it with a woolly thread and run it through blister, leaving ends projecting about one-half inch; this will act as a wick and dry up blister in short time.

From Military Instructors Manual by Schoonmaker, Oliver

Related Words

• castrate
• decontaminate
• disinfect
• neuter
• pasteurize
• sanitize
• spay