adulterate
verb
adul·ter·ate
ə-ˈdəl-tə-ˌrāt 
adulterated; adulterating
: to corrupt, debase, or make impure by the addition of a foreign or inferior substance or element
especially
: to prepare for sale by replacing more valuable with less valuable or inert ingredients
He was in the same plight as the manufacturer who has to adulterate and misrepresent his product. If he does not, some one else will. —
Upton Sinclair
Upton Sinclair Examples of adulterate in a Sentence
The company is accused of adulterating its products with cheap additives.
the company was fined for adulterating its “all beef” frankfurters with cereal
Recent Examples on the Web
Some olive oils are adulterated, which means other substances may be added to them to lower the quality—and often manufacturing costs—while increasing the amount in the bottle.
—Sohaib Imtiaz, Verywell Health, 27 Apr. 2026
Now, illicit chemists are adulterating batches of street drugs with a fast-changing and often baffling mix of compounds, ranging from Novocaine to a stabilizer used in plastics manufacturing called BTPMS.
—Brian Mann, NPR, 14 Apr. 2026
Naloxone, the active drug in Narcan, is only effective on opioids and not on stimulants like cocaine, which would suggest the substance Dick used was adulterated with an opiate such as fentanyl.
—Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 4 Mar. 2026
Instead, dealers usually adulterate their drugs, combining fentanyl with inert powders such as sugar and baby powder, or mixing in other drugs to stretch the active ingredient.
—Charles Fain Lehman, The Atlantic, 20 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for adulterate
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Sohaib Imtiaz, Verywell Health, 27 Apr. 2026
Now, illicit chemists are adulterating batches of street drugs with a fast-changing and often baffling mix of compounds, ranging from Novocaine to a stabilizer used in plastics manufacturing called BTPMS.
—Brian Mann, NPR, 14 Apr. 2026
Naloxone, the active drug in Narcan, is only effective on opioids and not on stimulants like cocaine, which would suggest the substance Dick used was adulterated with an opiate such as fentanyl.
—Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 4 Mar. 2026
Instead, dealers usually adulterate their drugs, combining fentanyl with inert powders such as sugar and baby powder, or mixing in other drugs to stretch the active ingredient.
—Charles Fain Lehman, The Atlantic, 20 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for adulterate
Cite this Entry
“Adulterate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adulterate. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
adulterate
transitive verb
adul·ter·ate
ə-ˈdəl-tə-ˌrāt
adulterated; adulterating
: to corrupt, debase, or make impure by the addition of a foreign or inferior substance
especially
: to prepare for sale by replacing more valuable with less valuable or inert ingredients
Legal Definition
adulterate
transitive verb
adul·ter·ate
ə-ˈdəl-tə-ˌrāt
adulterated; adulterating
: to corrupt, debase, or make impure by the addition of a foreign or inferior substance or element
especially
: to prepare for sale by omitting a valuable ingredient or by replacing more valuable ingredients with less valuable or inert and usually harmful ingredients or with ingredients different from those claimed
Note: Under the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, a device such as a piece of medical equipment that is defective in some way is considered adulterated.
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