often attributive
: a material (such as flammable or poisonous material) that would be a danger to life or to the environment if released without precautions
Did you know?
The origin of "hazmat" is clear enough - it was formed by combining the first three letters of each of two words: "hazardous" and "material." The word hazmat is fairly young, first appearing in print in 1980. Although it is a noun, "hazmat" tends to be used attributively, meaning that it often appears in sentences before another noun as if it were performing the duties of an adjective (as in "hazmat team" and "hazmat worker").
Examples of hazmat in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Overnight, a hazmat team arrived to handle the spill cleanup, and the highway was fully reopened at about 11:30 a.m. on May 21, the park said.
—
Daniella Segura, Sacbee.com, 22 May 2025
The trailer opens with a laboratory emergency in which a worker in a hazmat suit is fatally trapped inside an isolation chamber with what looks like a hungry T-rex.
—Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 20 May 2025
The kitty house of horrors came to light on Saturday, when a Bohemia Fire Department hazmat team was called in to investigate an ammonia stench emanating from the home.
—Theresa Braine, New York Daily News, 5 May 2025
YouTube star MrBeast expresses interest in purchasing TikTok less than a week before ban LA fire crews make progress but dangers remain; EPA hazmat teams to start cleaning debris
Can a state buy another state?
—Jonathan Limehouse, USA TODAY, 15 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hazmat
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Daniella Segura, Sacbee.com, 22 May 2025
The trailer opens with a laboratory emergency in which a worker in a hazmat suit is fatally trapped inside an isolation chamber with what looks like a hungry T-rex.
—Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 20 May 2025
The kitty house of horrors came to light on Saturday, when a Bohemia Fire Department hazmat team was called in to investigate an ammonia stench emanating from the home.
—Theresa Braine, New York Daily News, 5 May 2025
YouTube star MrBeast expresses interest in purchasing TikTok less than a week before ban LA fire crews make progress but dangers remain; EPA hazmat teams to start cleaning debris
Can a state buy another state?
—Jonathan Limehouse, USA TODAY, 15 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hazmat
Cite this Entry
“Hazmat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hazmat. Accessed 1 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
hazmat
noun
haz·mat
ˈhaz-ˌmat
often attributive
: a material (as radioactive, flammable, explosive, or poisonous material) that would be a danger to life or to the environment if released without necessary precautions being taken
toxic waste hauled away by workers in hazmat suits—Tom Spousta
Tom Spoustahazmat storage
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