polluting

adjective

pol·​lut·​ing pə-ˈlü-tiŋ 

: causing pollution

… a region that has been dependent upon basic industries such as coal mining and metal work—relatively polluting industries.

—Patricia L. Layman

The recycling process itself can be polluting. Recyclers find it difficult to separate recyclable from nonrecyclable plastics, which causes the end product to be useless.

—Sally Hayhow Cullen

Examples of polluting in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Shein is considered one, if not the most polluting fashion brands in the world. — Sharon Edelson, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026

Virgin polyester has long been one of fashion’s most polluting materials. — Jasmin Malik Chua, Footwear News, 17 June 2026

Going to space, Bezos said, would even help humans by relocating their most polluting industries off-planet entirely. — Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 17 June 2026

Among the plants that are exempt are many of the midwestern and mid-Atlantic plants directly upwind from Connecticut, as well as several plants that are the most polluting plants in the country. — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 27 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for polluting

• commuting
• computing
• diluting
• disputing
• eluting
• imputing
• recruiting
• refuting
• rerouting
• saluting
• transmuting
• uprooting