'contaminate' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'contaminare,' where 'con-' meant 'together' and 'taminare' meant 'to touch or defile.'

'contaminare' transformed into the Old French word 'contaminer,' and eventually became the modern English word 'contaminate' through Middle English.

Initially, it meant 'to defile by contact,' but over time it evolved into its current meaning of 'to make impure or unsuitable by contact or mixture.'