decontaminate

/diːkənˈtæmɪneɪt/

//diːkənˈtæmɪneɪt// verb

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

"decontaminate" is a 13-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“decontaminate” is uncommon English (frequency #93,606 among 3,470 “D” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#93,606
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To remove contamination from (something), rendering it safe.

Corpus desk

Index EN-decontaminate · decontaminate · English

decontaminate · rank #93,606 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #93,606
  • LEN-MEGA 13 letters
  • VOW-6 6 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH dedicatory

Nearest frequency peer: dedicatory (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “decontaminate”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “decontaminate” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for decontaminate
PropertyValue
Headworddecontaminate
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/diːkənˈtæmɪneɪt/
Letters13
Frequency rank#93,606
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “decontaminate” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).decontaminatefalls in this rarity band:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “dedicatory” (#93,607), “debye” (#93,604), “Deasy” (#93,603). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “decontaminate” is #93,606. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

decontaminate is uncommon English at frequency #93,606 among 3,470 “D” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /diːkənˈtæmɪneɪt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "To remove contamination from (something), rendering it safe.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for decontaminate, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From de- + contaminate. The correct English form is decontaminate, spelled D-E-C-O-N-T-A-M-I-N-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To remove contamination from (something), rendering it safe.

Etymology

From de- + contaminate.

This word in other languages

décontaminer(Français)dekontaminieren(Deutsch)

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 "decontaminate"?
"decontaminate" is spelled D-E-C-O-N-T-A-M-I-N-A-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /diːkənˈtæmɪneɪt/.
What does "decontaminate" mean?
As a verb, "decontaminate" means: To remove contamination from (something), rendering it safe.
How do you pronounce "decontaminate"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "decontaminate" is /diːkənˈtæmɪneɪt/. 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 "decontaminate"?
From de- + contaminate. 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 "decontaminate", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 13 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

counterstrike#93,579electrophilic#93,654carbamazepine#93,520housebreaking#93,799

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list