contaminate

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   To make something dirty, dangerous, or unsafe by adding harmful substances.

   This water is contaminated, so it isn't safe to drink.

2. 2
   verb

   To spoil or corrupt something by contact or mixing.

   Be careful not to contaminate the clean samples with dust.

Simplified etymology

Contaminate, recorded from late Middle English, belongs to the same Latin-derived family as contact and contagion. This family is associated with Latin tangere “touch,” also seen in contingere “touch.”

First attested in the early 15ᵗʰ century, in Middle English; from Middle English contaminaten (“to defile; to infect with desease”), from contaminat(e) (“sullied, defiled; infected with desease”, also used as the past participle of contaminaten) + -en (verb-forming suffix), from Latin contāminātus, the perfect passive participle of contāminō (“to touch together, blend, mingle, corrupt, defile”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), which see for further informations. More at taste, tax, and taxi.

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