as in cleaning
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 decontaminating
Among our responsibilities was decontaminating people and equipment after exposure to hazardous materials.
—
Jennifer N. Pritzker, Chicago Tribune, 22 Mar. 2026
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
Jennifer N. Pritzker, Chicago Tribune, 22 Mar. 2026
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for decontaminating
Verb
-
An old toothbrush is helpful for cleaning tight areas.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
The Spruce,
16 May 2026
-
When the bubbles stop, use a clean cloth to wipe away the stain and cleaning residue.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
16 May 2026
Verb
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The data shows that black and brown people spend much longer time, in longer lines, purging people, people literally showing up and not knowing that their names have been purged from the rolls.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
4 May 2026
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The administration has provided no explanation for purging the board, which helps steer the National Science Foundation and acts as an independent advisory body for the president and Congress on scientific and engineering issues, providing reports throughout the year.—
Beth Mole,
ArsTechnica,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Williams has played only 52 total minutes in the playoffs thus far due to a hamstring strain, but that didn't stop the Thunder from sweeping both the Phoenix Suns in the first round and the Lakers in the conference semifinals.—
Bryan Toporek,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2026
-
Will Miami stay ahead of New York after sweeping the Jets last season?—
David Furones,
Sun Sentinel,
14 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Decontaminating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/decontaminating. Accessed 23 May. 2026.
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