Hygienal

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Concerned with cleanliness and the practices that protect health and prevent disease
2. Relating to the principles of sanitation and the maintenance of good health
3. Describing whatever promotes cleanliness and the prevention of illness through sanitary care

Etymology: Hygieia was the Greek goddess of health, a daughter of the healing god Asclepius, and her name gave us "hygiene" through the French "hygiène." That noun, meaning the practices that keep the body clean and healthy, is the base of this adjective. The ending "-al" is a common English suffix meaning "relating to," as in "national" or "medical," so the adjective simply means relating to hygiene. It is a straightforward formation that adds the suffix to an existing noun rather than a separate, independently borrowed term.

Synonyms: hygienic, sanitary, clean

Antonyms: unhygienic, insanitary