biodegradable

Meanings

1. 1adjectivenot comparablebiology

   Able to be broken down into harmless natural substances by bacteria, fungi or other living things.

   Grammar: Usually not comparable: a material either is or is not biodegradable, though people say 'highly biodegradable'.

   Patterns

   • biodegradable packaging
   • biodegradable in soil

   The cups are made of biodegradable paper and rot within weeks in the compost.

   Food scraps are biodegradable, but most plastic bottles are not.

   The shop switched to biodegradable bags last year.

2. 2adjectivebefore a noun

   Describing products designed or advertised as being gentler on the environment because they will decay naturally.

   Grammar: Often appears before a noun in marketing: biodegradable soap; check how fast the product actually breaks down.

   Patterns

   • biodegradable detergent
   • biodegradable cleaner

   We bought biodegradable detergent for the camping trip.

   The cleaner is advertised as biodegradable and safe for streams.

   They hand out biodegradable cutlery at the festival.

Common combinations

biodegradable packaging

The company promised to use only biodegradable packaging.

fully biodegradable

The wrapper is fully biodegradable within six months.

biodegradable plastic

Biodegradable plastic still needs the right conditions to decay.

biodegradable waste

Biodegradable waste goes into the green bin.

biodegradable material

The garden bags are made of biodegradable material.

readily biodegradable

The soap is readily biodegradable in river water.

Synonyms and how they differ

compostable

Compostable means it breaks down into usable compost under certain conditions, which is a stricter claim than biodegradable.

decomposable

Decomposable is a more general word for anything that can rot or break apart, while biodegradable stresses the work of living organisms.

eco-friendly

Eco-friendly is a loose marketing phrase covering many environmental benefits, whereas biodegradable describes only how something breaks down.

Opposites

Word family

biodegrade verb

to break down naturally through the action of living organisms

biodegradability noun

the ability of something to break down naturally

biodegradation noun

the natural process of breaking down by living organisms

nonbiodegradable adjective

unable to be broken down naturally

Commonly confused: biodegradable or recyclable? biodegradable or compostable?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “biodegradable”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words