# polluted

/pəˈɫutɪd/ (US) · /pəlˈuːtɪd/ (UK) · CEFR B1 · Adjective

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/polluted
Updated: 2026-05-06

## Definition

dirty or unsafe because of harmful chemicals or waste. You use this to describe air, water, or land that is no longer clean.

For teachers: contaminated with harmful or poisonous substances. Often used predicatively after 'become' or 'remain', or attributively to describe environmental conditions.

## Examples

- The river is too polluted for swimming.
- Many cities struggle with polluted air during the summer months when traffic is heavy.
- The report highlighted how decades of industrial runoff had left the soil so heavily polluted that local agriculture was no longer viable without extensive remediation.

## Pitfalls

- Not "The smoke polluted the air." but "The air is polluted." — While 'pollute' is a verb, learners often use the past participle 'polluted' as a verb when they actually intend to describe the state (adjective).

## Usage notes

- Often modified by adverbs of degree like 'heavily', 'badly', or 'severely'.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.