noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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UK:/diːkənˌtæmɪˈneɪʃən/
Mid-Atlantic, US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
rhymes with -eɪʃən
CMU ARPABET:D IY0 K AH0 N T AE2 M AH0 N EY1 SH AH0 N
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
The process of removing contamination, particularly the cleaning off of dangerous materials.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
the removal of contaminants
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: contamination
Broader terms: removal, remotion
History
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *de Proto-Indo-European *-h1 Proto-Indo-European *déh1 Proto-Italic *dē Latin dē Latin dē-der. English de- English contamination English decontamination From de- + contamination.
Across languages
Translations
24 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Asturian:
descontaminación
— process of removing contamination
Catalan:
descontaminació
— process of removing contamination
Chinese Mandarin:
去污染
(qù wūrǎn)
— process of removing contamination
Chinese Mandarin:
淨化 /净化
(jìnghuà)
— process of removing contamination
Chinese Mandarin:
消毒
(xiāodú)
— process of removing contamination
Finnish:
puhdistus
— process of removing contamination
Finnish:
vaarallisten aineiden poisto puhdistamalla
— process of removing contamination
Finnish:
dekontaminaatio
— process of removing contamination
Finnish:
dekontaminointi
— process of removing contamination
French:
décontamination
— process of removing contamination
Galician:
descontaminación
— process of removing contamination
German:
Dekontamination
— process of removing contamination
Italian:
decontaminazione
— process of removing contamination
Japanese:
除染
(josen)
— process of removing contamination
Polish:
dekontaminacja
— process of removing contamination
Polish:
odkażanie
— process of removing contamination
Portuguese:
descontaminação
— process of removing contamination
Romanian:
decontaminare
— process of removing contamination
Russian:
обеззара́живание
(obezzaráživanije)
— process of removing contamination
Russian:
деконтамина́ция
(dekontaminácija)
— process of removing contamination
Serbo-Croatian:
деконтаминација
— process of removing contamination
Serbo-Croatian:
dekontaminacija
— process of removing contamination
Spanish:
descontaminación
— process of removing contamination
Ukrainian:
знезара́ження
(znezarážennja)
— process of removing contamination
