How to Use contaminate in a Sentence

contaminate

verb
  • Don't touch the microchip or the oil on your hands will contaminate it.
  • Make sure the white paint is not contaminated by any of the other colors.
  • Be careful not to allow bacteria to contaminate the wound.
  • But cooking deli meat at high heat can kill any germs that may contaminate these products.
    — Lisa Rapaport, EverydayHealth.com, 22 July 2024
  • All that can contaminate water and soil, not to mention lay waste to large tracts of land.
    — Bydennis Normile, science.org, 1 Nov. 2022
  • This could cause water from the mop sink to contaminate the potable water.
    — Paige Moore, AZCentral.com, 25 Mar. 2026
  • These items can cause jams in the balers and contaminate whole batches of plastic.
    — Kristin Hostetter, Outside Online, 14 Mar. 2022
  • Then there are viruses like norovirus that can contaminate food and water as well.
    — Colleen Stinchcombe, SELF, 21 Dec. 2018
  • What is the cost to the people if it is contaminated?
    — Leah Olajide, Freep.com, 12 Jan. 2026
  • This act contaminates the water, kills all the fish, and makes the water non-potable.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, 31 Mar. 2026
  • Those with unwashed hands, which may contaminate surfaces, should be kept out of the kitchen.
    — USA Today, 20 Nov. 2020
  • Three and a half decades later, the site is still contaminated.
    — Ariane Lange, Sacramento Bee, 22 Jan. 2025
  • The seeds were contaminated from a giant grower and the seeds went all over the world.
    — Megan Rodriguez, ExpressNews.com, 8 July 2019
  • Just don't bring the muckier parts of it inside to build up and contaminate our homes.
    — Mark Patrick Taylor, CBS News, 26 May 2023
  • The volume was great enough for the flow to exit the school and contaminate its playground.
    — oregonlive, 28 Mar. 2021
  • Food can become contaminated at any point, from the farm to the grocery store to your kitchen.
    — Julie Scott, Verywell Health, 24 June 2026
  • Their actions become more toxic and contaminate all of the folks around them.
    — Jack Kelly, Forbes, 5 Jan. 2022
  • Don't risk contaminating the soil, starting a fire, or worse to remove a stump.
    — Daniel Scott, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Mar. 2026
  • Those later contaminate the soil, harm wildlife, and enter our food and water.
    — Emily Farra, Vogue, 23 Dec. 2020
  • This can lead to surface runoff, which can contaminate water, spread pathogens, seed algae blooms and kill fish.
    — Bennet Goldstein, Journal Sentinel, 7 Mar. 2024
  • The parasite’s eggs, called oocysts, are shed in cat stool and can contaminate soil, water and food.
    — Dr. Megan Yanny, Boston Herald, 31 May 2026
  • But chromium is present in the crust and might have leached into the layer and contaminated it.
    — Byadam Mann, science.org, 15 Aug. 2024
  • There’s no harm in doing it but any bacteria on the lemons will contaminate the water.
    — Alana Al-Hatlani, Southern Living, 23 Apr. 2026
  • The other was that ashy sludge could contaminate the water itself.
    — Ella Nilsen, CNN, 3 Sep. 2022
  • That’s because plants change the soil that they are grown in, says Paul, and so would contaminate the samples.
    — Stephen Ornes, Discover Magazine, 23 Dec. 2022
  • Because the germs on shoes can easily spread to your floors, and then contaminate your house as a result.
    — Joshua Hawkins, BGR, 14 Apr. 2022
  • The oversight caused lead to leach from the pipes and contaminate the drinking water of thousands of homes.
    — Amudalat Ajasa The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 2 July 2025
  • The space was too small for large tools; a lubricant for the screws could have contaminated the samples.
    — Daniel Wu, Washington Post, 31 Jan. 2024
  • Don't cross-contaminate raw meat, poultry and seafood, and keep them securely wrapped.
    — Claire Peltier, ABC News, 25 Feb. 2026
  • Always avoid touching the front of the mask, which could be contaminated with droplets that contain the virus.
    — Ashley Abramson, Allure, 1 May 2020

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'contaminate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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