as in poisoning
to pass something harmful (such as a disease) to someone or something else
If you come to work when you're sick, you'll infect everyone in the office.
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Recent Examples of infecting
Measles outbreaks are infecting more people this year than in any year since the early 1990s and have already killed three.
—
Suhail Bhat, USA Today, 2 Oct. 2025
The researchers had shown in 2023 that parasitic scraps of DNA could spread within bacterial populations by hitching rides on the tails of infecting viruses.
—Elie Dolgin, IEEE Spectrum, 25 Sep. 2025
And infecting a living cow is harder, says Robert de Vries, a virologist at Utrecht University in the Netherlands, who was also not involved in the study.
—Chris Simms, Scientific American, 25 Sep. 2025
As Rolling Stone pointed out in August, meme coins have come to represent the logic of meme culture infecting the real world.
—Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2025
That’s the best way to keep the flies from infecting the fruits.
—Nan Sterman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Sep. 2025
These facilities agreed to and completed full cleaning and disinfection procedures to prevent the bacteria from growing and infecting others.
—Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2025
Central America is currently grappling with outbreaks of the destructive pest, which have been threatening livestock and infecting people.
—Dominique Mosbergen, Time, 26 Aug. 2025
The disease can be transmitted when a mosquito bites an infected person, acquiring the parasite, and then bites another person, infecting them.
—Sarah Fortinsky, The Hill, 19 Aug. 2025
Suhail Bhat, USA Today, 2 Oct. 2025
The researchers had shown in 2023 that parasitic scraps of DNA could spread within bacterial populations by hitching rides on the tails of infecting viruses.
—Elie Dolgin, IEEE Spectrum, 25 Sep. 2025
And infecting a living cow is harder, says Robert de Vries, a virologist at Utrecht University in the Netherlands, who was also not involved in the study.
—Chris Simms, Scientific American, 25 Sep. 2025
As Rolling Stone pointed out in August, meme coins have come to represent the logic of meme culture infecting the real world.
—Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2025
That’s the best way to keep the flies from infecting the fruits.
—Nan Sterman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Sep. 2025
These facilities agreed to and completed full cleaning and disinfection procedures to prevent the bacteria from growing and infecting others.
—Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2025
Central America is currently grappling with outbreaks of the destructive pest, which have been threatening livestock and infecting people.
—Dominique Mosbergen, Time, 26 Aug. 2025
The disease can be transmitted when a mosquito bites an infected person, acquiring the parasite, and then bites another person, infecting them.
—Sarah Fortinsky, The Hill, 19 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for infecting
Verb
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Krishna discovers that Kaliya is living beneath the surface of a local pond and poisoning its waters with his venom.—
Seamus Sullivan
September 29,
Literary Hub,
29 Sep. 2025
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Authorities said Boytsov is also accused of poisoning his wife, who is one of the deceased, with the alcohol.—
Charlotte Phillipp,
PEOPLE,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Tales From Beyond the Pale co-creator Glenn McQuaid unleashes a Jason Voorhees whose appearance is concealed not by a hockey mask but a squiggly blur of video noise, corrupting the handheld footage of him stalking college kids through the woods.—
A.A. Dowd,
Vulture,
3 Oct. 2025
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The additional time exposed to harsh radiation is, not surprisingly, corrupting JunoCam's images.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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To relieve the burning pain, people plunge the affected limb in streams or ponds, triggering the release of thousands of larvae and contaminating the water source.—
Michal Ruprecht,
NPR,
1 Oct. 2025
-
The government ignored Hamilton’s warning, and for 50 years lead spewed from every car’s tailpipe, contaminating the air, soil, and bodies of generations.—
Tom Frieden,
Big Think,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The electrolyzer’s design addresses fouling, current distribution, and thermal management, which are common failure points for electrochemical systems receiving heterogeneous feedstocks.—
Kapil Kajal,
Interesting Engineering,
23 Sep. 2025
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But drawing an over-aggressive, poor-technique personal foul on a 60-yard attempt for a guy trying a field goal 12 yards longer than any attempt in his career is akin to fouling a basketball player heaving a three-quarters court shot at the buzzer while trailing by two.—
Parker Gabriel,
Denver Post,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Arsenal host Chelsea in the coming weeks, a two-pronged opportunity for both spoiling and redemption.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
5 Oct. 2025
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Soundcore reckons that the screen's large footprint should help prevent the odd gust of wind from spoiling the yard or pool party.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Ross is also taller, giving officers more viewing coverage above crowds than Walking Horses, which can be as short as 14 hands, or 4 feet, 9 inches tall.—
Craig Shoup,
Nashville Tennessean,
3 Oct. 2025
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Free friendship bracelets at Insomnia Cookies Meanwhile, Insomnia Cookies is giving customers free friendship bracelets for the day.—
Cheryl V. Jackson,
IndyStar,
3 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Infecting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/infecting. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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