pesticides

plural of pesticide
as in poisons
a chemical that is used to kill animals or insects that damage plants or crops The family farm has gradually moved away from the use of pesticides.

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pesticides Compared to other toxins in the environment like plasticizers and pesticides, outdoor air pollution is the most harmful type based on current evidence causing millions of deaths per year. Matt Fuchs, Time, 10 Sep. 2025 The report’s suggestions include calls for more research on the impact of cumulative exposure, as well as more support of technology like precision agriculture, which could decrease the amounts of pesticides applied to crops. Chloe Sorvino, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025 Saeed also argues that organic produce can be just as heavily sprayed as other produce and that organic pesticides may have a high level of toxicity. Joshua Siskin, Oc Register, 10 Sep. 2025 The science is clear on the harmful health impacts of farmers directly spraying pesticides, but less clear when studied in low levels carried through to food, said Mozaffarian. Will McDuffie, ABC News, 9 Sep. 2025 But the report calls for few changes on regulation of pesticides. Allison Aubrey, NPR, 9 Sep. 2025 But others have returned on their own as habitat protection and restoration, the elimination of certain pesticides, and a shift away from shooting raptors and other large birds made the region less threatening for them. Tom Langen, The Conversation, 9 Sep. 2025 Language around pesticides strategy also remained unchanged. Sarah Owermohle, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2025 Limiting runoff from pesticides and fertilizers often used on lawns can reduce saltwater intrusion in aquifers and contamination in waterways, Davidson said. Eduardo Cuevas, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pesticides
Noun
  • Canadian wildfires prematurely kill Americans and vice versa; slash and burn farming in rural Cambodia poisons Phnom Penhers.
    Suwanna Gauntlett Upjohn, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2025
  • While standard rat poisons accumulate in the animal’s body, the active ingredient in the Good Works contraceptive is rapidly metabolized in the rat’s liver.
    Nara Schoenberg, Chicago Tribune, 27 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • As a long-time environmental lawyer, Kennedy has spoken out frequently against the use of agricultural pesticides and herbicides.
    Allison Aubrey, NPR, 9 Sep. 2025
  • The forest preserves offer various resources online about how to remove buckthorn, including herbicides.
    Joseph States, Chicago Tribune, 2 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Parents will be especially alarmed and this will place terrible burdens on pediatricians who will need to assuage their worries in order to provide important protections against serious and sometimes fatal diseases.
    Jasmine Laws, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Sep. 2025
  • Nurabot is currently being piloted in Taichung Veterans General Hospital in Taiwan, on a ward that treats diseases associated with the lungs, face and neck, including lung cancer and asthma.
    Rebecca Cairns, CNN Money, 12 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Neely Lab is interested in applying the technology to gene editing, having previously used CRISPR to understand the mechanisms behind how venoms cause cell death and pain, and how proteins bind to cells, including the crucial spike protein in SARS-CoV-2.
    IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 27 July 2025

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“Pesticides.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pesticides. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.

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