contaminate

/kənˈtæmɪneɪt/

//kənˈtæmɪneɪt// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"contaminate" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“contaminate” has 16 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #35,662. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#35,662
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
16
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To make something dangerous or toxic by introducing impurities or foreign matter.

Corpus desk

Index EN-contaminate · contaminate · English

contaminate · rank #35,662 · 16 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #35,662
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH confounding

Nearest frequency peer: confounding (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “contaminate”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “contaminate” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

contaminate vs contaminated
92% similar
contaminate vs contaminant
82% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for contaminate
PropertyValue
Headwordcontaminate
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/kənˈtæmɪneɪt/
Letters11
Frequency rank#35,662
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “contaminate”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).contaminatelands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “confounding” (#35,661), “Copley” (#35,663), “corgi” (#35,664). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “contaminate” is #35,662. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around contaminate (IPA /kənˈtæmɪneɪt/), averb. Corpus frequency is #35,662 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for contaminate, with forms such as "ccontaminate", "cnotaminate", and "conatminate". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "contaminated", "contaminant", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: First attested in the early 15ᵗʰ century, in Middle English; from Middle English contaminaten (“to defile; to infect with desease”), from contaminat(e) (“sullied, defiled; infected with desease”, also used as the past participle of contaminaten) + -en (verb… The correct English form is contaminate, spelled C-O-N-T-A-M-I-N-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To make something dangerous or toxic by introducing impurities or foreign matter.
  2. 2
    To soil, stain, corrupt, or infect by contact or association.
  3. 3
    To make unfit for use by the introduction of unwholesome or undesirable elements.
  4. 4
    To infect, usually of a deadly virus.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. This water is contaminated. It isn't safe to drink.
  2. Bombs and munitions meanwhile contain toxic substances that contaminate soil, water, and vegetation.

Etymology

First attested in the early 15ᵗʰ century, in Middle English; from Middle English contaminaten (“to defile; to infect with desease”), from contaminat(e) (“sullied, defiled; infected with desease”, also used as the past participle of contaminaten) + -en (verb-forming suffix), from Latin contāminātus, the perfect passive participle of contāminō (“to touch together, blend, mingle, corrupt, defile”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), which see for further informations. More at taste, tax, and taxi.

This word in other languages

contaminer(Français)verunreinigen(Deutsch)contaminar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ccontaminate
  • cnotaminate
  • conatminate
  • conntaminate
  • contaimnate
  • contamiante
  • contaminaet
  • contaminatte
  • contaminnate
  • contamintae
  • contamminate
  • contamniate
  • contmainate
  • conttaminate
  • cotnaminate
  • ocntaminate

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of contaminate - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

ccontaminate1cnotaminate2conatminate2conntaminate1contaimnate2contamiante2contaminaet2contaminatte1
Edit distance from "contaminate"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "contaminate"?
"contaminate" is spelled C-O-N-T-A-M-I-N-A-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /kənˈtæmɪneɪt/.
What does "contaminate" mean?
As a verb, "contaminate" means: To make something dangerous or toxic by introducing impurities or foreign matter.
What words are commonly confused with "contaminate"?
"contaminate" is commonly confused with "contaminated", "contaminant". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "contaminate"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "contaminate" is /kənˈtæmɪneɪt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "contaminate"?
First attested in the early 15ᵗʰ century, in Middle English; from Middle English contaminaten (“to defile; to infect with desease”), from contaminat(e) (“sullied, defiled; infected with desease”, also used as the past participle of contaminaten) +... See the full etymology section above for more details.
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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "contaminate", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

confounding#35,661Butterfield#35,641fragmentary#35,725grandparent#35,739

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (16 here; floor ≥5).

commensurate16 variantscertifying16 variantsdystrophy16 variantshomeopathic16 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list