1
as in dilute
containing foreign or lower-grade substances
the pharmacist was convicted of selling adulterate drugs in order to maximize profits
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in adulterous
relating to or being a sexual encounter or relationship between a married person and someone other than their spouse
caught red-handed in what he claimed was his first adulterate encounter
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in to dilute
to alter (something) for the worse with the addition of foreign or lower-grade substances
the company was fined for adulterating its "all beef" frankfurters with cereal
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of adulterate
Lauren Leffer, Popular Science, 1 May 2025
Farmers or middlemen also frequently adulterated milk, watering it down to stretch supplies—with impure water likely to introduce further pathogens—or adding toxic substances, like formaldehyde or chalk, meant to conceal spoilage or make milk appear whiter.
— Made By History, Time, 29 Apr. 2025
Acid Red 18 is not allowed, so the product is considered adulterated.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Apr. 2025
Of course, a lot of us have the natural instinct to drink cask strength whiskey neat, as if adding water is needlessly adulterating the spirit, or worse yet, a sign of wimpiness.
—Tony Sachs, Forbes, 3 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for adulterate
Verb
Ground coffee was often about 80 to 90 percent adulterated in the mid-19th century, says Blum.
—Lauren Leffer, Popular Science, 1 May 2025
Farmers or middlemen also frequently adulterated milk, watering it down to stretch supplies—with impure water likely to introduce further pathogens—or adding toxic substances, like formaldehyde or chalk, meant to conceal spoilage or make milk appear whiter.
— Made By History, Time, 29 Apr. 2025
Acid Red 18 is not allowed, so the product is considered adulterated.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Apr. 2025
Of course, a lot of us have the natural instinct to drink cask strength whiskey neat, as if adding water is needlessly adulterating the spirit, or worse yet, a sign of wimpiness.
—Tony Sachs, Forbes, 3 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for adulterate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for adulterate
Adjective
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Second, a dilute hydrochloric acid is used to dissolve the remaining lithium and the transition metals—nickel, cobalt, and manganese.—
Aman Tripathi,
Interesting Engineering,
12 Oct. 2025
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For example, Wilson’s team is exploring whether dilute acids speed up weathering.—
Robert F. Service,
Science | AAAS,
3 Sep. 2020
Adjective
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The supernatural thriller sees a woman return from death as a vindictive spirit to torment her adulterous husband.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
26 June 2025
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But with a twist so big — Sarah being the killer of her adulterous husband Adam’s mistress, Kelly Summers, and the one who set him up for the murder while simultaneously defending him tooth and nail in court — where was Rose to go after that?—
Jennifer Maas,
Variety,
29 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
For instance, an injunction to stop a company from polluting a lake is premised on the idea that damage to a lake and the life in it is irreparable.—
Dan Bernstein,
Sportico.com,
16 Oct. 2025
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Gas from Tehran fuels nearly a third of Iraq's electricity generation, yet frequent and prolonged outages remain common, forcing residents to rely on costly, polluting private generators.—
Emma Graham,
CNBC,
15 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Authorities add that polluted water, marine debris, and unstable cliffs may also pose hazards, according to a webpage from the National Park Service (NPS).—
Anna Skinner,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Oct. 2025
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But perhaps most significantly, these changes may be linked to cyanobacteria, toxic microbes often found in polluted waters.—
Pranjal Malewar,
New Atlas,
14 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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But the tragedy also proved devastating for the couple, as stories of Ted's extramarital affairs and heavy drinking dominated headlines.—
Virginia Chamlee,
PEOPLE,
10 Oct. 2025
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This raised the possibility of an extramarital relationship gone sour.—
David D. Kirkpatrick,
New Yorker,
5 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The company in 2020 pleaded guilty to distributing adulterated ice-cream products and agreed to pay a fine over the outbreak.—
Dylan Tokar,
WSJ,
2 Feb. 2023
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And while most of those overdoses involved the illicit synthetic opioid fentanyl, experts say that an adulterated and contaminated drug supply is also leading to deaths.—
Nadia Kounang,
CNN,
17 Mar. 2022
Adjective
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The district also seeks a maintenance and operations budget override of 15% for full-day kindergarten, class sizes, art and music programs, career and technical education programs, athletics, extracurricular activities, teacher and staff salaries and professional development.—
Erick Trevino,
AZCentral.com,
17 Oct. 2025
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Beyond the classroom, participating in extracurricular activities and volunteering can be a fun way to discover passions and maybe find a future college major.—
RACHEL SPECTOR,
Miami Herald,
14 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Empty the bird baths and wash them with a diluted solution of vinegar and water, and dry before refilling.—
Joan Morris,
Mercury News,
13 Oct. 2025
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If your napkin is saturated in grease, soaking it in a diluted vinegar mixture will help remove the greasy feel and smell while also softening the fibers.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
13 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Adulterate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/adulterate. Accessed 19 Oct. 2025.
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