Synonyms for infect
Most common
Definitions
- v. 1
To bring (the body or part of it) into contact with a substance that causes illness (a pathogen), so that the pathogen begins to act on the body; (of a pathogen) to come into contact with (a body or body part) and begin to act on it.
Not everyone will be infected when an epidemic strikes.
Related words
- Word family
- infectable infectible infection infective infectious
Forms
- Past participle
- infected
e.g. infected → contaminated, tainted, poisoned, polluted…
Choose the right word
Contaminate and infect refer to something evil that deeply pervades and permeates, as the human body or mind.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- poison This transparent liquid contains a kind of poison.
- pollute Travelling by bus or bike, you could pollute less.
- contaminate Cars with heat engines contaminate a lot.
- affect Petrol prices affect us all in one way or another.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| infect | rising | |
| poison | rising | |
| taint | steady | |
| pollute | steady | |
| contaminate | steady | |
| affect | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 5 letters
- spoil1, sully2, taint1, leper2, imbue2
- 6 letters
- affect2, poison2, injure2, defile, debase2
- 7 letters
- corrupt2, pollute2, tarnish2, vitiate3, debauch, envenom
- 10 letters
- adulterate4
- 11 letters
- contaminate4
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (sully2 = 2 syllables).