adulterate

a·dul·ter·ate

Use adulterate in a sentence

adjective

Adulterate is defined as something that has been diluted with lesser quality ingredients.
When fast food restaurants are accused of using beaks and feet to make their chicken nuggets, it is an example of an adulterate addition.

adjective

The definition of adulterate can describe a person or thing contaminated by the act of being unfaithful.
A woman who cheats on her husband is an example of an adulterate woman.

verb

Adulterate means to make something inferior or less pure by adding something harmful or of a lower quality.
An example of adulterate is when an organic beauty company adds harsh or harmful chemicals to their products.

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"Adulterate." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Adulterate.

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Adulterate. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Adulterate

adulterate

transitive verb

-·at·ed, -·at·ing

to make inferior, impure, not genuine, etc. by adding a harmful, less valuable, or prohibited substance

Origin of adulterate

from Classical Latin adulteratus, past participle of adulterare, to falsify from adulter, an adulterer, counterfeiter from ad-, to + alter, other, another

guilty of adultery; adulterous
adulterated; not genuine

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MLA Style

"Adulterate." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Adulterate.

APA Style

Adulterate. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Adulterate

adulterate

transitive verb

a·dul·ter·at·ed, a·dul·ter·at·ing, a·dul·ter·ates

To make impure by adding extraneous, improper, or inferior ingredients.

adjective

Archaic

Spurious; adulterated.
Adulterous.

Origin of adulterate

Latin adulterāre adulterāt- to pollute ; see al-¹ in Indo-European roots.

Related Forms:

a·dul′ter·a′tion
noun

a·dul′ter·a′tor
noun

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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MLA Style

"Adulterate." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Adulterate.

APA Style

Adulterate. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Adulterate

adulterate

adulterate debase doctor load

These verbs mean to make impure or inferior by adding foreign substances to something: adulterate coffee with ground acorns; silver debased with copper; doctored the wine with water; rag paper loaded with wood fiber.

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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Link to this page

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MLA Style

"Adulterate." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Adulterate.

APA Style

Adulterate. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Adulterate

Adjective

(comparative more adulterate, superlative most adulterate)

Tending to commit adultery.
Corrupted; impure; adulterated.

Verb

(third-person singular simple present adulterates, present participle adulterating, simple past and past participle adulterated)

To corrupt.
To spoil by adding impurities.
to adulterate food, drink, drugs, coins, etc.
To commit adultery.
To defile by adultery.

Origin

Dated 16th Century CE; modified from adulteration, likely with earlier origin in the Latin past‐participle adulteratus.

English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.

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Link to this page

Cite this page

MLA Style

"Adulterate." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Adulterate.

APA Style

Adulterate. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Adulterate

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