as in to clean
to remove dirty or dangerous substances (such as radioactive material) from (a person, thing, place, etc.)
Special workers were called in to decontaminate the area after the oil spill.
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Recent Examples of decontaminate
Contaminated Water Recreational or drinking water gets contaminated when septic tanks leak into wells, when an infected person vomits or defecates in the water, or when wastewater isn’t treated properly to decontaminate it.
—
Emily Kay Votruba, EverydayHealth.com, 2 Dec. 2025
Radiation protection personnel allegedly responded to the incident quickly, pulling the worker from the water and decontaminating him safely.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2025
Workers have complained of chemical burns from the waste material generated by the tunneling process, and firefighters must decontaminate their equipment after conducting rescues from the project sites.
—Anjeanette Damon, ProPublica, 10 Oct. 2025
Last week, a Democratic Congressional candidate was seen being thrown to the ground by a federal agent – the moment was captured on video – while local leaders reported having to leave the protest to decontaminate themselves after tear gas was deployed.
—Dan Gooding, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for decontaminate
Emily Kay Votruba, EverydayHealth.com, 2 Dec. 2025
Radiation protection personnel allegedly responded to the incident quickly, pulling the worker from the water and decontaminating him safely.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2025
Workers have complained of chemical burns from the waste material generated by the tunneling process, and firefighters must decontaminate their equipment after conducting rescues from the project sites.
—Anjeanette Damon, ProPublica, 10 Oct. 2025
Last week, a Democratic Congressional candidate was seen being thrown to the ground by a federal agent – the moment was captured on video – while local leaders reported having to leave the protest to decontaminate themselves after tear gas was deployed.
—Dan Gooding, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for decontaminate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for decontaminate
Verb
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For 26 years, Wilson worked in his own carpet-cleaning business, available to customers 24/7.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
28 Mar. 2026
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Pairs that make the cut are cleaned from the sole upward, disinfected inside and, in some cases, whitened under UV light before being put back into circulation.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
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State law prohibits a project that uses federal tax-credit financing or other public incentives from applying for the local property tax break — another provision Weber’s change would wipe from code.—
Mark Dee
March 26,
Idaho Statesman,
26 Mar. 2026
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How did this non-franchise movie wipe the floor with the competition?—
Rebecca Alter,
Vulture,
23 Mar. 2026
Verb
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And the space industry uses helium to purge rocket fuel tanks, a demand that is expected to grow because of more frequent launches by companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
20 Mar. 2026
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There were also calls to purge Chavez’s name from buildings, streets and other features.—
Jaweed Kaleem,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The shift also orphaned blocs of conservatives swept into neighboring districts long held by Democrats, turning the seats a lighter shade of blue, but blue nonetheless.—
Jake Goodrick,
Sacbee.com,
27 Mar. 2026
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The Vitello era begins with a 0-2 record, and San Francisco is on the verge of being swept to start the year.—
Justice delos Santos,
Mercury News,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Decontaminate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/decontaminate. Accessed 30 Mar. 2026.
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