infect

verb

(transitive) 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.

(transitive) To contaminate (an object or substance) with a pathogen.

(transitive) To make somebody enthusiastic about one's own passion, or to communicate a feeling to others, or a feeling communicating itself to others.

adjective

(rare, grammar, of a tense or verb form) Representing an action not yet completed.

(obsolete) Infected.

Roots

facio-fect · Latin · make, do

Synonyms for infect

taintn contaminatev inoculatev pollutev cankern

Synonyms & related words for infect

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of infect — including taint, contaminate, inoculate, pollute, canker. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to infect

Explore words related to infect — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include reinfect, noninfected, reinfection, infective, viruses, infectious, infection, contagion. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for infect

Common synonyms for infect include taint, contaminate, inoculate, pollute, canker — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does infect come from?

The word infect breaks down into one root of Latin origin: the root -fect, from Latin facio (“make, do”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.