Chinese word

消毒

Pronunciation

Pinyinxiāo dú

Meaning

  • verbdisinfect

Example

我们要给门把手消毒。wǒ men yào gěi mén bà shǒu xiāo dú

We need to disinfect the doorknob.

Illustration for 消毒 (disinfect)

More examples

妈妈用热水给孩子的玩具消毒。mā mā yòng rè shuǐ gěi hái zi de wán jù xiāo dú

Mom disinfects her child's toys with hot water.

Core concept

Reduce the danger from germs by making them inactive on a person, object, wound, or surface.

Common phrases

  • 给玩具消毒gěi wán jù xiāo dú

    disinfect toys

  • 对餐具消毒duì cān jù xiāo dú

    disinfect tableware

  • 对公共场所消毒duì gōng gòng cháng suǒ xiāo dú

    disinfect public places

Similar words

杀菌shā jūn: Uses medicine, heat, or another treatment to kill bacteria and other microorganisms.
灭菌miè jūn: Uses high heat or chemical treatment to kill every microorganism and make an item sterile.
清洗qīng xǐ: Cleans an object or surface by washing away dirt with water or detergent.

Definition in Chinese

用消毒剂、热处理或其他方法消除或使伤口、器具与环境表面的致病微生物失去活性，降低感染风险。yòng xiāo dú jì rè chú lǐ huò qí tā fāng fǎ xiāo chú huò shǐ shāng kǒu qì jù yǔ huán jìng biǎo miàn de zhì bìng wēi shēng wù shī qù huó xìng jiàng dī gán rǎn fēng xiǎn

Word origin

消 (xiāo, "remove") + 毒 (dú, "poison") creates the image of removing a harmful threat, and the modern term applies it to making disease-causing germs inactive.

Usage tips

  • Chinese can leave the agent or method unstated, so this verb is useful when the important fact is that an item or surface has been treated rather than which product was used.

Other meanings

  • sanitizeverb
  • sterilizeverb
  • disinfectionnoun

Opposites

Related words

  • 消毒剂xiāo dú jìdisinfectantnoun
  • 消毒液xiāo dú yèdisinfectant solutionnoun
  • 消毒柜xiāo dú guìdisinfection cabinetnoun

Word lists with this word