Pollute Definition
pə-lo͝ot
polluted, pollutes, polluting
verb
polluted, pollutes, polluting
To make unfit for or harmful to living things, especially by the addition of waste matter.
American Heritage
To contaminate (water, air, etc.) with harmful chemicals, waste material, etc.
Webster's New World
To make less suitable for an activity, especially by the introduction of unwanted factors.
The stadium lights polluted the sky around the observatory.
American Heritage
To make unclean, impure, or corrupt; defile; dirty.
Webster's New World
To make unfit for or harmful to living things, especially by the addition of waste matter.
American Heritage Medicine
Synonyms:
adjective
(rare) Polluted.
Wiktionary
Origin of Pollute
-
From Middle English polluten, from Latin pollÅ«tum, from pollÅ«tus (“no longer virgin", "unchaste"), perfect passive participle of polluō (“soil", "defile", "dishonor").
From Wiktionary
Middle English polluten from Latin polluere pollūt-
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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