Why this word is great
ADULTERATION — [Noun] The act of debasing a substance by adding inferior or foreign materials, or the resulting state of fraudulent impurity. From the Latin adulterātiōn- (stem of adulterātiō), meaning "corruption" or "falsification," from adulterāre ("to corrupt, falsify"). Unlike "contamination," which implies a passive, often accidental fouling, or "dilution," which can be a neutral, declared thinning, adulteration is a calculated act of deception for profit. It is the grit of chalk in flour, the lead pigment whitening milk, the bitter quinine in cheap gin—a cold, commercial betrayal performed not to destroy, but to cheaply simulate, where trust becomes the cheapest ingredient of all, leaving every transaction shadowed by the question of what, precisely, is being bought.