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View synonyms for

contaminate

[ verb kuhn-tam-uh-neyt; noun adjective kuhn-tam-uh-nit, -neyt ]

verb (used with object)

contaminated, contaminating.
  1. to make impure or unsuitable by contact or mixture with something unclean, bad, etc.:

    to contaminate a lake with sewage.

    Synonyms: , , , , ,

  2. to render harmful or unusable by adding radioactive material to:

    to contaminate a laboratory.



noun

  1. something that contaminates or carries contamination; contaminant.

adjective

  1. Obsolete. contaminated.

contaminate

verb

  1. to make impure, esp by touching or mixing; pollute
  2. to make radioactive by the addition of radioactive material
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. archaic.
    contaminated
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Derived Forms

  • DzˈٲԲپ, adjective
  • DzˈٲԲ, adjective
  • DzˈٲˌԲٴǰ, noun
  • DzˈٲԲԳ, noun
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Other Word Forms

  • Dz·ٲi·Բ· adjective
  • Dz·ٲi·Բt adjective
  • Dz·ٲi·Բtǰ noun
  • Dz·ٲi·Դdzܲ adjective
  • nonDz·ٲi·Բ· adjective
  • nonDz·ٲi·Բt adjective
  • cDz·ٲi·Բٱ verb (used with object) recontaminated recontaminating
  • -Dz·ٲi·ԲiԲ adjective
  • unDz·ٲi·Բ· adjective
  • ܲcDz·ٲi·Բe adjective
  • unDz·ٲi·Բt adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of contaminate1

1375–1425; late Middle English contaminaten < Latin DzԳ峾ٳܲ, past participle of DzԳ峾 to defile, spoil, equivalent to con- con- + -峾Բ, verbal derivative of *峾 something touched < *tag-s-men, equivalent to tag-, variant stem of tangere to touch + -s-men resultative noun suffix; examen
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Word History and Origins

Origin of contaminate1

C15: from Latin DzԳٲ to defile; related to Latin contingere to touch
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

The contaminated water released toxic gas that briefly engulfed Dunsmuir and made hundreds of people ill.

From

It is yet another example of the state’s failing water systems, many of which are in rural parts of the state’s Central Valley, where water is drawn from wells that are contaminated.

From

Davis said he was never a fan of using scraping to fix contaminated soils because “it’s like making it a somebody-else’s-problem type thing.”

From

But they can also catch it by eating contaminated meat or dairy products.

From

Sinner's violation carried a maximum sanction of four years before his defence - that he was inadvertently contaminated with the substance by his physiotherapist - was considered.

From

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contaminantcontamination