contaminado
/kontamiˈnado/
The English word "polluted" is translated into Spanish as contaminado.
contaminado is used to describe things that have been defiled. While contaminado refers to chemical or environmental pollution, sucio is used for general dirt or lack of cleanliness.
Meaning: defiled (adj)
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Argentina, polución may be used as a synonym for contaminación.
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective must agree in gender with the noun it modifies, so use the feminine form contaminada for feminine nouns like agua (water) or tierra (earth). The adjective must agree in number with the noun it modifies, using contaminados for masculine plural or contaminadas for feminine plural.
How do you pronounce it?
/kontamiˈnado/
Did you know?
- In some Latin American regions, the term polución is used to refer to environmental pollution, which is a 'false friend' because in English 'pollution' is a noun but 'polución' can also refer to sexual arousal in specific contexts.
- In certain colloquial contexts, saying someone has a mente contaminada (polluted mind) is a common way to suggest they have a 'dirty' or suggestive way of thinking.
- The verb contaminar shares its DNA with the English 'contaminate', tracing back to the Latin 'contaminare' which originally meant to touch or stain with dust.
Examples in context
- Estoy respirando aire contaminado.I am breathing polluted air.This sentence is useful for describing the act of breathing contaminado air.Tatoeba #1688040 by marcelostockle, translation #1664436 by Amastan
- El océano está contaminado con microplásticos.The ocean is polluted by microplastics.This sentence shows how to describe an ocean that is contaminado by microplastics.Tatoeba #13519938 by Seael, translation #7289673 by Hybrid
- El río está contaminado por desperdicios de casas y fábricas.The river is polluted by waste from houses and factories.This sentence describes a river being contaminado by waste from houses and factories.Tatoeba #1517052 by marcelostockle, translation #45762 by CM
- El agua está contaminadaThe water is polluted
- La polución afecta la calidad del airePollution affects the air quality
- 7 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Elena and Mateo are discussing the local lake.
- ElenaNo nades aquí, el agua está contaminada.Don't swim here, the water is polluted.
- MateoParece limpia, ¿estás segura, Elena?It looks clean, are you sure, Elena?
- ElenaSí, el lago está muy contaminado.Yes, the lake is very polluted.
- MateoGracias por avisarme, busquemos otro lugar.Thanks for telling me, let's find another place.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry contaminado, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries contaminado, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
