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Glite Dictionary
to fluoridate

to fluoridate

3 7.1
To put fluoride into water to help prevent tooth decay
  • verb
  • /ˈflʊə.rɪ.deɪt/
  • Specialized
: fluoridar
  • Portland Mayor Sam Adams on Friday used his Twitter account to announce that he'll vote in favor of a proposal to fluoridate the city's drinking water.
  • fluoridated water
  • fluoridate the water supply

Examples

  • Health officials recommend that municipalities fluoridate their water to reduce the incidence of tooth decay.

  • Commission Fritz voted to fluoridate.

    Blog text (6)

  • These are common cases and would be three times more likely if your city doesn't fluoridate.

    Blog text (6)

  • We just moved to Germany, and all the pipes out here are pretty old. We've been told they don't fluoridate the water.

    Blog text (16)

  • The Oregonian Mayor Sam Adams will support fluoridating the city's water, ensuring it will pass the Portland City Council.

    Blog text (21)

  • Renton's Liberty Park Wellhead, one of several facilities in Renton where water is filtered, treated, and fluoridated.

    Blog text (7)

  • I will not give my 20-month-old daughter fluoridated water; it would be uncontrolled dosing, and she could get more than enough from toothpaste if she needed it.

    Blog text (7)

  • He confirmed later on Twitter that his vote ensures a majority, which would lead to fluoridating a water supply serving about 900,000 residents in Portland, Gresham, Tigard, and Tualatin.

    Blog text (21)

  • The city council decided to fluoridate the drinking water to help prevent cavities among residents.

  • In many communities, they choose to fluoridate water supplies to improve oral health for children.

Synonyms

to fluoridize
vsto fluoridate
  • Specialized
7.8

To add fluoride to water or teeth to help prevent tooth decay

adds fluoride to substances, mainly water, aiming to reduce tooth decay

Surface Forms

fluoridate infinitive
fluoridated past
fluoridated past participle
fluoridating present participle
fluoridates third person singular

Morphology

fluoridate = fluoride (transparent) = fluoride + ate

The verb is formed by adding the productive verb-forming suffix '-ate' to the noun 'fluoride', so the meaning 'to add fluoride' is directly derivable.

Etymology

The word fluoridate comes from fluoride, which comes from the Latin root flu- meaning 'to flow' and is the same root in the familiar word fluid. So, to fluoridate water is to add fluoride to the water to help protect teeth.