sanitation

noun

san·i·ta·tion | \ ˌsa-nə-ˈtā-shən

Definition of sanitation

1 : the act or process of making sanitary

2 : the promotion of hygiene and prevention of disease by maintenance of sanitary conditions (as by removal of sewage and trash) —often used attributively a sanitation trucksanitation workers

Examples of sanitation in a Sentence

Diseases can spread from poor sanitation.

Recent Examples on the Web

In Boston, sensors alert sanitation workers which trash cans need pickup and help design their routes. — Mark Lamster, Dallas News, "Data is shaping the future of Dallas, but be careful what you wish for," 1 Aug. 2019 Last year, the New Orleans sanitation department scooped up over 1,200 tons of waste after all the parades wrapped up. — Alejandra Borunda, National Geographic, "It's time to rethink Mardi Gras—without tons of plastic beads," 22 Feb. 2019 As a result, one day, sanitation workers will seize carts and camp chairs from residents. — Los Angeles Times, "Lawsuit seeks to stop L.A. from seizing and discarding homeless people’s belongings," 18 July 2019 Traditional sanitation systems are costly to build and maintain, so the foundation’s Reinvented Toilet initiative is helping to develop alternatives such as the toilets seen here. — Manuel Canales, National Geographic, "These new toilets could solve a global problem," 22 June 2019 Keralan sanitation workers were beset with scrub typhus, and murine typhus had infiltrated Los Angeles City Hall. — Rafil Kroll-zaidi, Harper's magazine, "Findings," 10 Apr. 2019 Incorporate into your care plan a section on safety: fall prevention, food safety and sanitation, medicine safety (use lock boxes, have some administer when necessary), financial safety, physical safety, etc. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Ask Veronica — How to keep appointments and paperwork from wearing you down," 21 June 2019 The goals closest to being met are those for hunger and nutrition, water and sanitation, and health and education. — The Economist, "The world is a long way from meeting its gender-equality target," 5 June 2019 Nick Sibilla, a writer and legislative analyst for the Institute for Justice, wrote in Forbes that all of the violations have been for unlicensed braiding and that none of the fines were prompted because of any health or sanitation violation. — Breanna Edwards, The Root, "Tennessee Has Fined Residents Almost $100,000 for Braiding Hair Without a License ... Seriously," 16 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sanitation.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.