adulterate

[əˈdʌltəreɪt]

/[əˈdʌltəreɪt]/ verb

The verdict

“adulterate” is uncommon German (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency German
10
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - fälschen, panschen, verschneiden, verfälschen

Corpus desk

Index DE-adulterate · adulterate · German

adulterate · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "A" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for adulterate
PropertyValue
Headwordadulterate
LanguageGerman
Part of speechVerb
IPA[əˈdʌltəreɪt]
Letters10
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „adulterate“ im Deutschen

adulterateliegt außerhalb der 100.000 häufigsten deutschen Wörter, im Langschwanz technischer, archaischer oder seltener Formen, genau dort, wo Schreibzweifeln zuschlagen.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

adulterate is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed [əˈdʌltəreɪt]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for adulterate, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct German form is adulterate, spelled A-D-U-L-T-E-R-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    fälschen, panschen, verschneiden, verfälschen
  2. 2
    kontaminieren, verunreinigen

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how adulterate appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. "In all cases where a trace of copper salt had been used to adulterate the fresh lubricant, tackiness was to be noted in the course of a short period (a week upwards) after the rubber was dry."
  2. "The microscopy of coffee is, on the whole, more important to the planter than to the consumer and the dealer; while, on the other hand, the microscopy is of paramount importance to the consumer and the dealer as furnishing the best means of determining whether the product offered is adulterated or not."

Synonyms

Antonyms

enrichstrenghten

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "adulterate"?
"adulterate" is spelled A-D-U-L-T-E-R-A-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is [əˈdʌltəreɪt].
What does "adulterate" mean?
As a verb, "adulterate" means: fälschen, panschen, verschneiden, verfälschen
How do you pronounce "adulterate"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "adulterate" is [əˈdʌltəreɪt]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "adulterate" come from?
"adulterate" is a German word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list