🇩🇪German Source WordCode: DE

nicht biologisch abbaubar

Pronunciation / Transliteration: nɪçt biʊˈloːɡɪʃ ˈapbaʊˌbaːɐ̯

🇬🇧 Direct English Meaning:
Non-biodegradable/ˌnɒnˌbaɪ.əʊdɪˈɡreɪ.də.bəl/
adjectiveCEFR B2 (Upper)Top #4500 frequency
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🇩🇪 Example Sentence in German:

"Viele Kunststoffe sind nicht biologisch abbaubar."

Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As adjective
  1. 1

    Incapable of being broken down by bacteria or other living organisms, thereby persisting in the environment indefinitely.

    "Most conventional plastics are non-biodegradable and contribute significantly to global pollution."
  2. 2

    Relating to substances that do not naturally decay into harmless natural elements.

    "The city implemented stricter regulations on non-biodegradable packaging materials."

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Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

Derived from the English prefix 'non-' (meaning not), combined with 'biodegradable', which was coined in the mid-20th century from 'bio-' (Greek bios, life) and 'degradable' (from Latin degradare, to reduce). The term emerged prominently in environmental science literature during the rise of modern plastics and synthetic materials in the 1960s and 1970s.

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