contaminates

Verb

contaminate (third-person singular simple present contaminates, present participle contaminating, simple past and past participle contaminated)

1. (transitive) To make something dangerous or toxic by introducing impurities or foreign matter.
   • This water is contaminated. It isn't safe to drink.

   Synonyms:

   poison, pollute, taint

2. (transitive) To soil, stain, corrupt, or infect by contact or association.
   • Shall we now
     Contaminate our figures with base bribes?1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Iulius Cæsar”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...

   Synonyms:

   defile, pollute, sully, assoil, beclart, bedaub, bedirty, imbrue (especially with blood), bedizen, befile

3. (transitive) To make unfit for use by the introduction of unwholesome or undesirable elements.
   • Do not contaminate the peanut butter with the jelly.

   Synonyms:

   mar, mess up, ruin, ball up, blight, bumble, botch, bugger up, bungle, corrupt

4. (transitive) To infect, usually of a deadly virus.

   Synonyms:

   disease, leper

See all 6 meanings of contaminate