Meaning & use
contamination
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Meanings
noununcountable
The process or state of being made dirty or unsafe by an unwanted substance.
Grammar: Used as an uncountable noun; talk about 'contamination of something' or 'contamination in something'.
Patterns
- contamination of something
- contamination in something
- contamination from something
The contamination of the river by chemicals killed most of the fish.
Tests showed contamination in the city's drinking water.
Workers wore protective suits to avoid contamination from the radioactive material.
noununcountabletechnical
The act of adding a harmful or unwanted substance to something that should be pure.
Grammar: Often used in technical or medical contexts; can be followed by 'with' to name the substance.
Patterns
- contamination with something
- prevent contamination
- avoid contamination
The lab follows strict rules to prevent contamination with bacteria.
Contamination with heavy metals makes the soil unsafe for farming.
The package was sealed to avoid contamination during shipping.
Common combinations
- cross-contamination
- Always wash your hands to prevent cross-contamination between raw meat and vegetables.
- environmental contamination
- Environmental contamination from the factory affected nearby homes.
- food contamination
- Food contamination can cause serious illness if the food is not cooked properly.
- risk of contamination
- There is a high risk of contamination if the equipment is not sterilized.
Synonyms and how they differ
- pollution
- Pollution usually refers to harmful substances in the natural environment, while contamination can also refer to unwanted substances in food, labs, or other materials.
- impurity
- An impurity is a small amount of an unwanted substance, often not harmful; contamination suggests a more serious or dangerous presence.
Opposites
Word family
- contaminate verb
- To make something dirty or unsafe by adding a harmful substance.
- contaminant noun
- A substance that contaminates something.
- contaminated adjective
- Made dirty or unsafe by an unwanted substance.
Commonly confused: contamination or pollution?
contamination vs pollution
Pollution is mostly used for harm to the natural environment (air, water, land), while contamination can happen in smaller-scale settings like kitchens or labs.
Practice
The scientists found ______ in the samples, so they had to repeat the experiment.
Choose one answer.
The noun 'contamination' fits after 'found' as the object of the sentence. 'Contaminating' is a verb form, 'contaminate' is the base verb, and 'contaminated' is an adjective or past participle, none of which work as the object here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “contamination”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.