carcinogenic

adjective

car·​ci·​no·​gen·​ic ˌkär-sə-nō-ˈje-nik 

: producing or tending to produce cancer

a carcinogenic substance/compound/chemical

a chemical that has been found to have carcinogenic effects

Removing the carcinogenic mineral—used for years as a pipe and tank insulator—is a highly regulated process …

—Jefferson Kolle

carcinogenically

ˌkär-sə-nō-ˈje-ni-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

The plant derivatives … are less carcinogenically active than those from the fossil fuels.

—Peter Bernfeld

carcinogenicity

ˌkär-sə-nō-jə-ˈni-sə-tē 

noun

The scientist, Dr. Bruce Ames, of the University of California at Berkeley, was the developer of the most widely used rapid laboratory test … for detecting the probable carcinogenicity of chemicals.

—Philip M. Boffey

Did you know?

It sometimes seems as if the list of carcinogenic substances gets longer every day. A substance such as a food additive that's been in common use for years may unexpectedly show signs of being carcinogenic in laboratory experiments. When that happens, the suspected carcinogen will often have to be withdrawn from the market. When a building material like asbestos turns out to be a carcinogen, it may also have to be physically removed from buildings. English has hundreds of other scientific words ending in -genic (such as allergenic), and in almost all of them the ending means "causing".

Examples of carcinogenic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Those carcinogenic solvents currently require energy-intensive evaporation to safely recycle them. —IEEE Spectrum, 12 Mar. 2025

Though plastics have been part of the environment for decades, popular interest in their carcinogenic effects is just picking up steam. —Claire Bugos, Verywell Health, 7 Mar. 2025

Some pesticides have been linked to hormone disruption, oxidative stress and even potential carcinogenic effects. —Mark Joseph, Newsweek, 23 Feb. 2025

The recent ban on Red No. 3—a potentially carcinogenic dye approved in 1902—highlights just how slow this process can be. —Boutayna Chokrane, WIRED, 13 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1916, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for carcinogenic

• angiogenic
• anthropogenic
• atherogenic
• cardiogenic
• embryogenic
• iatrogenic
• immunogenic
• metallogenic
• methanogenic
• nonpathogenic
• odontogenic
• osteogenic

Medical Definition

carcinogenic

adjective

car·​ci·​no·​gen·​ic ˌkärs-ᵊn-ō-ˈjen-ik 

: producing or tending to produce cancer

the carcinogenic action of certain chemicals

—The Journal of the American Medical Association

carcinogenically

-i-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

carcinogenicity

-jə-ˈnis-ət-ē 

noun

plural carcinogenicities