as in contaminants
something that is or that makes impure
filtered the pollutants out of the water
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Recent Examples of pollutants
Each pod is filled with native wetland plants whose roots filter out pollutants like phosphorus and nitrogen from the water, eventually making their way to the Chattahoochee River.
—
Joshua Cole, CBS News, 11 May 2026
Those backup generators, often powered using combustion turbines, are associated with pollution in the form of carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds, particulate matter and some hazardous air pollutants, according to the EPA.
—Sofi Zeman
may 11, Kansas City Star, 11 May 2026
The work also points toward a potential circular manufacturing model in which waste plastics and spent battery acid are reused to create high-value chemicals instead of becoming environmental pollutants.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 8 May 2026
And while the law largely governs toxins, the rollback has also undermined action on climate change, including repealing the legal theory used to classify greenhouse gas emissions like carbon dioxide as regulated pollutants.
—Mark Olalde, ProPublica, 8 May 2026
But the Cuyahoga River combusting due to pollutants from corporate dumping was one of the keystone events in the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency.
—Chicago Tribune, 4 May 2026
These hazardous pollutants can cause cancer and damage the nervous system and liver.
—The Sacramento Bee Staff, Sacbee.com, 30 Apr. 2026
In addition, researchers are using synthetic biology to design organisms capable of detecting and breaking down environmental pollutants, offering new tools for bioremediation.
—André O. Hudson, The Conversation, 30 Apr. 2026
Ground-level ozone is created by chemical reactions between pollutants, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
—Eva Flowe
april 28, Charlotte Observer, 28 Apr. 2026
Joshua Cole, CBS News, 11 May 2026
Those backup generators, often powered using combustion turbines, are associated with pollution in the form of carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds, particulate matter and some hazardous air pollutants, according to the EPA.
—Sofi Zeman
may 11, Kansas City Star, 11 May 2026
The work also points toward a potential circular manufacturing model in which waste plastics and spent battery acid are reused to create high-value chemicals instead of becoming environmental pollutants.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 8 May 2026
And while the law largely governs toxins, the rollback has also undermined action on climate change, including repealing the legal theory used to classify greenhouse gas emissions like carbon dioxide as regulated pollutants.
—Mark Olalde, ProPublica, 8 May 2026
But the Cuyahoga River combusting due to pollutants from corporate dumping was one of the keystone events in the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency.
—Chicago Tribune, 4 May 2026
These hazardous pollutants can cause cancer and damage the nervous system and liver.
—The Sacramento Bee Staff, Sacbee.com, 30 Apr. 2026
In addition, researchers are using synthetic biology to design organisms capable of detecting and breaking down environmental pollutants, offering new tools for bioremediation.
—André O. Hudson, The Conversation, 30 Apr. 2026
Ground-level ozone is created by chemical reactions between pollutants, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
—Eva Flowe
april 28, Charlotte Observer, 28 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pollutants
contaminants
Noun
-
Researchers are using high-pressure processing techniques to extract the compound while removing contaminants.—
Bri Buckley,
CBS News,
12 May 2026
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The year after Ikezoe moved to New York, an earthquake and tsunami in Japan caused an electrical grid failure, leading the nuclear power plant in Fukushima to release radioactive contaminants in the surrounding region.—
Alex Greenberger,
ARTnews.com,
11 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pollutants.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pollutants. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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