1
as in dilute
containing foreign or lower-grade substances
the pharmacist was convicted of selling adulterate drugs in order to maximize profits
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in adulterous
relating to or being a sexual encounter or relationship between a married person and someone other than their spouse
caught red-handed in what he claimed was his first adulterate encounter
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in to dilute
to alter (something) for the worse with the addition of foreign or lower-grade substances
the company was fined for adulterating its "all beef" frankfurters with cereal
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 adulterate
Jessica Schladebeck,
New York Daily News,
4 Mar. 2026
Instead, dealers usually adulterate their drugs, combining fentanyl with inert powders such as sugar and baby powder, or mixing in other drugs to stretch the active ingredient.
—
Charles Fain Lehman,
The Atlantic,
20 Jan. 2026
This comes after Martin pled guilty to willfully poisoning or adulterating food, water or medicine, which is a felony offense in Nevada.
—
Kimberlee Speakman,
PEOPLE,
17 Jan. 2026
Fruits, leafy greens and other produce can become adulterated with listeria through fecal contamination, which can occur through wastewater, water in the growing area, fertilizer and the proximity of said growing area to livestock, USA TODAY previously reported.
—
Mary Walrath-Holdridge,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for adulterate
Verb
Naloxone, the active drug in Narcan, is only effective on opioids and not on stimulants like cocaine, which would suggest the substance Dick used was adulterated with an opiate such as fentanyl.
—
Jessica Schladebeck,
New York Daily News,
4 Mar. 2026
Instead, dealers usually adulterate their drugs, combining fentanyl with inert powders such as sugar and baby powder, or mixing in other drugs to stretch the active ingredient.
—
Charles Fain Lehman,
The Atlantic,
20 Jan. 2026
This comes after Martin pled guilty to willfully poisoning or adulterating food, water or medicine, which is a felony offense in Nevada.
—
Kimberlee Speakman,
PEOPLE,
17 Jan. 2026
Fruits, leafy greens and other produce can become adulterated with listeria through fecal contamination, which can occur through wastewater, water in the growing area, fertilizer and the proximity of said growing area to livestock, USA TODAY previously reported.
—
Mary Walrath-Holdridge,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for adulterate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for adulterate
Adjective
-
But dwarf galaxies are smaller and colder, with more dilute and slower-moving matter.
-
Second, a dilute hydrochloric acid is used to dissolve the remaining lithium and the transition metals—nickel, cobalt, and manganese.
Adjective
-
Fiction is inherently adulterous.
-
But the gamesmanship, foreshadowing the adulterous antics of Harold Pinter’s plays, escalates perilously.
Verb
-
The solution is to support federal and state legislation that encourages lower-cost, less-polluting renewable energy to speed up the transition away from environmentally damaging fossil fuels.
-
Plastics degrade into microplastics, which in humans have been linked to cancer, reproductive problems, and other health issues, and which are polluting ecosystems from coral reefs to Antarctica.
Adjective
-
If one neighborhood is highly polluted but nearby communities aren’t, county-level averages would show an overall low level of pollution – even though the more detailed information would reveal a major problem to be addressed in one particular area.
-
Her inner light reminds him of the stars he’s seen with his own eyes, above the polluted atmosphere of Earth.
Adjective
-
Black employed Epstein has a wealth management adviser, but also allegedly confided in him about personal matters, including extramarital affairs that ended in nondisclosure agreements.
-
Cue a whole host of dodgy deals and shady string-pulling, not to mention an extramarital affair, as the entirely fictional — but no doubt true to life — character abandons any sense of morality.
Adjective
-
The company in 2020 pleaded guilty to distributing adulterated ice-cream products and agreed to pay a fine over the outbreak.
-
And while most of those overdoses involved the illicit synthetic opioid fentanyl, experts say that an adulterated and contaminated drug supply is also leading to deaths.
Adjective
-
Without the tax, OCPS would lose about $256 million in funding that pays for about 2,000 teachers and several dozen extracurricular programs like sports and the arts.
-
Avelar is a part of an extracurricular program run by America SCORES Bay Area, a nonprofit that allows students to learn and play the sport of soccer, as well as honing some of their academic skills through poetry.
Adjective
-
By contrast, brewing coffee takes several minutes, resulting in a lighter, more diluted drink.
-
To help remove sugar or milk, spray the area with diluted dishwashing soap solution.
Cite this Entry
“Adulterate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/adulterate. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
