contaminate

English

Etymology

From (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Old French contaminer, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Latin contaminare (“to touch together, blend, mingle, corrupt, defile”), from contamen (“contact, defilement, contagion”), related to tangere.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kənˈtæmɪneɪt/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Verb

1. (transitive) To make something dangerous or toxic by introducing impurities or foreign matter.

   This water is contaminated. It isn't safe to drink.

2. (transitive) To soil, stain, corrupt, or infect by contact or association.
   • Shakespeare

     Shall we now / Contaminate our figures with base bribes?

   • Goldsmith

     I would neither have simplicity imposed upon, nor virtue contaminated.

   • 2014 April 12, Michael Inwood, “Martin Heidegger: the philosopher who fell for Hitler [print version: Hitler's philosopher]”, in The Daily Telegraph (Review)‎^[1], London, page R11:

     [Martin] Heidegger's repellent political beliefs do not contaminate his philosophical work.

3. (transitive) To make unfit for use by the introduction of unwholesome or undesirable elements.

   Do not contaminate the peanut butter with the jelly.

4. To infect, often with bad objects

Related terms

• contaminable
• contamination
• contaminative

Translations

To introduce impurities or foreign matter

• Bulgarian: замърсявам (bg) (zamǎrsjavam)
• Catalan: contaminar (ca)
• Czech: znečistit, kontaminovat
• Danish: forurene (da), kontaminere
• Finnish: saastuttaa (fi), pilata (fi)
• French: contaminer (fr), salir (fr)
• German: verunreinigen (de); verseuchen (de), kontaminieren (de) (poison or pathogen)
• Greek:

  Ancient: μιαίνω (miaínō), μολύνω (molúnō)

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Irish: truailligh
• Italian: contaminare (it)
• Latin: contāminō
• Maori: tāhawahawa, whakaparu
• Polish: zatruwać (pl)
• Portuguese: contaminar (pt)
• Russian: загрязня́ть (ru) impf (zagrjaznjátʹ), загрязни́ть (ru) pf (zagrjaznítʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: truaill
• Swedish: kontaminera (sv)

Further reading

• “contaminate”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “contaminate”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “contaminate”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

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Italian

Verb

contaminate

1. second-person plural present of contaminare
2. second-person plural imperative of contaminare
3. feminine plural past participle of contaminare

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Latin

Verb

(deprecated template usage) contāmināte

1. second-person plural present active imperative of contāminō