contaminant

\kɔ̃.ta.mi.nɑ̃\

/\kɔ̃.ta.mi.nɑ̃\/ noun

The verdict

“contaminant” is uncommon French (frequency #65,807 among 257,141 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#65,807
frequency rank, French
257,141
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Tout agent biologique ou chimique, toute matière étrangère ou toute autre substance n'étant pas ajoutée intentionnellement aux produits alimentaires et pouvant compromettre la sécurité ou la salubr...

Key facts for contaminant
PropertyValue
Headwordcontaminant
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\kɔ̃.ta.mi.nɑ̃\
Letters11
Frequency rank#65,807
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “contaminant” sits in French frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

contaminant is uncommon French at frequency #65,807 among 257,141 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed \kɔ̃.ta.mi.nɑ̃\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Tout agent biologique ou chimique, toute matière étrangère ou toute autre substance n'étant pas ajoutée intentionnellement aux produits alimentaires et pouvant compromettre la sécurité ou la salubr...".

contaminant doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is contaminant, spelled C-O-N-T-A-M-I-N-A-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Tout agent biologique ou chimique, toute matière étrangère ou toute autre substance n'étant pas ajoutée intentionnellement aux produits alimentaires et pouvant compromettre la sécurité ou la salubrité.

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 French corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "contaminant"?
"contaminant" is spelled C-O-N-T-A-M-I-N-A-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is \kɔ̃.ta.mi.nɑ̃\.
What does "contaminant" mean?
As a noun, "contaminant" means: Tout agent biologique ou chimique, toute matière étrangère ou toute autre substance n'étant pas ajoutée intentionnellement aux produits alimentaires et pouvant compromettre la sécurité ou la salubr...
How do you pronounce "contaminant"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "contaminant" is \kɔ̃.ta.mi.nɑ̃\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "contaminant" come from?
"contaminant" is a French word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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.

Using “contaminant”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct French spelling is C-O-N-T-A-M-I-N-A-N-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \kɔ̃.ta.mi.nɑ̃\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words

Other uncommon French words near this rank

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list