1
as in tainting
to affect slightly with something morally bad or undesirable
poisoning the minds of impressionable children with ethnic hatred
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in polluting
to make unfit for use by the addition of something harmful or undesirable
exhaust fumes poisoning the air
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in degrading
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
this party partisanship poisons the national debate we should be having about this urgent problem
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in turning
to cause to have often negative opinions formed without sufficient knowledge
malicious rumors had poisoned many church members against the new pastor
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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 poisoning
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
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
Her radical friend Anja, however, goes too far, poisoning pig feed with a strange black liquid that gradually turns the pigs into bloodthirsty zombies.
—Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 27 Sep. 2025
Hidden resentments could be poisoning your work-life balance.
—Usa Today, USA Today, 21 Sep. 2025
That same day, he was sentenced to life in prison without parole for fatally poisoning Angela.
—Doc Louallen, ABC News, 19 Sep. 2025
Adam Kron, a senior attorney at the environmental advocacy group Earthjustice, said any company ignoring or avoiding regulations entirely reminds him of the fracking boom in the early 2010s, when companies moved quickly to drill, poisoning some local communities’ groundwater in the process.
—Taylor Kate Brown, ProPublica, 17 Sep. 2025
Thousands of multivitamin bottles sold on Amazon and other websites have been recalled over a risk of serious injury or death by poisoning.
—Joel Thayer, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Sep. 2025
Sherrilyn McQueen, who has published more than 80 novels that reached the New York Times bestseller list under the name Sherrilyn Kenyon, first accused her ex-husband Lawrence Kenyon of poisoning her in a lawsuit in 2019, a year after her husband filed for divorce.
—Evan Mealins, The Tennessean, 10 Sep. 2025
Seamus Sullivan
september 29, Literary Hub, 29 Sep. 2025
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
Her radical friend Anja, however, goes too far, poisoning pig feed with a strange black liquid that gradually turns the pigs into bloodthirsty zombies.
—Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 27 Sep. 2025
Hidden resentments could be poisoning your work-life balance.
—Usa Today, USA Today, 21 Sep. 2025
That same day, he was sentenced to life in prison without parole for fatally poisoning Angela.
—Doc Louallen, ABC News, 19 Sep. 2025
Adam Kron, a senior attorney at the environmental advocacy group Earthjustice, said any company ignoring or avoiding regulations entirely reminds him of the fracking boom in the early 2010s, when companies moved quickly to drill, poisoning some local communities’ groundwater in the process.
—Taylor Kate Brown, ProPublica, 17 Sep. 2025
Thousands of multivitamin bottles sold on Amazon and other websites have been recalled over a risk of serious injury or death by poisoning.
—Joel Thayer, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Sep. 2025
Sherrilyn McQueen, who has published more than 80 novels that reached the New York Times bestseller list under the name Sherrilyn Kenyon, first accused her ex-husband Lawrence Kenyon of poisoning her in a lawsuit in 2019, a year after her husband filed for divorce.
—Evan Mealins, The Tennessean, 10 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for poisoning
Verb
-
Rahmani, the former prosecutor, said statements by Patel and other Justice Department officials could raise concerns about tainting the jury pool in a future trial.—
Erin Mansfield,
USA Today,
15 Sep. 2025
-
And around all this, the whiff of Epstein is tainting the president's achievements.—
Kate Plummer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
China’s is arguably the most important; whatever the world’s most-polluting country does will determine the planet’s climate trajectory.—
Ella Nilsen,
CNN Money,
24 Sep. 2025
-
Transition finance, where financial firms actively pursue opportunities to fund polluting companies’ emissions reductions, has become a hot area.—
Justin Worland,
Time,
23 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Carbon capture challenges Hiegel explained that carbon capture remains hindered by high energy demands, poor flexibility with industrial loads, costly infrastructure requirements, and health and safety risks from degrading chemicals, all of which slow its adaptability.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
29 Sep. 2025
-
Over time, these substances may infiltrate groundwater, creating serious long-term health concerns, degrading habitats, and endangering communities that rely on those resources.—
Michaela Rychetska,
JSTOR Daily,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Kempes scored his second on the stroke of half-time in extra time, bundling his way past two Dutch defenders and goalkeeper Jongbloed before scrappily turning home a shot that deflected in off Wim Suurbier.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
5 Oct. 2025
-
Knudsen, chief scientific adviser in research and early development at Novo Nordisk, played a pivotal role in turning it into an effective drug promoting weight loss that millions of people take today.—
Katie Hunt,
CNN Money,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
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
-
The point isn’t to stop them from spoiling it.—
JD Barker,
Rolling Stone,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
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
-
Abbie blames Leila for corrupting her, for using her as a life raft after the death of her sister, and Leila’s heart breaks, leading her to agree to participate in the Leap ceremony the next day.—
Erin Qualey,
Vulture,
25 Sep. 2025
-
The additional time exposed to harsh radiation is, not surprisingly, corrupting JunoCam's images.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
In 1984, the Cubs won both games at Wrigley in convincing fashion.—
Barry M. Bloom,
Sportico.com,
1 Oct. 2025
-
Part of Manfred’s agenda in the coming years involves convincing the owners to band together and offer consumers a 30-team package of local television rights.—
Andy McCullough,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Poisoning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/poisoning. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share