toxic substances

/ˈtɒksɪk ˈsʌbstənsɪz/

noun

  1. Materials that can harm people, animals, plants, or other living things if swallowed, breathed in, or absorbed through the skin.

    B1

    plural

    • "Keep toxic substances out of reach of children."A2
    • "The factory was fined for dumping toxic substances into the river."B2
    • "Workers must wear protective clothing when handling toxic substances."B1

  2. In everyday or figurative use, harmful things that can damage people's health or well-being, such as dangerous chemicals in food or products.

    C1

    figurative

    • "Campaigners want toxic substances removed from children's toys."C1

Common mistakes

  • toxic substance→toxic substances

    Use the plural when referring to multiple harmful materials in general.

Collocations

exposure to toxic substancesdispose of toxic substancestoxic substances in the environmenthandle toxic substancestoxic substances in foodtoxic wastetoxic chemicalstoxic fumestoxic gashazardous substances

Word family

toxictoxicitytoxintoxicologytoxicologistdetoxifyintoxicate