impurity

[ im-pyoor-i-tee ]

noun

, plural im·pu·ri·ties

1. the quality or state of being impure.

   Synonyms: taint, pollution, contamination

2. Often impurities. something that is or makes impure:

   After the flood the authorities warned against impurities in the drinking water.

impurity

/ ɪmˈpjʊərɪtɪ /

noun

1. the quality of being impure
2. an impure thing, constituent, or element

   impurities in the water

3. electronics a small quantity of an element added to a pure semiconductor crystal to control its electrical conductivity See also acceptor donor

Word History and Origins

Origin of impurity¹

1400–50; late Middle English impurite < Latin impūritās. See impure, -ity

Example Sentences

Limestone also had to be acquired to reduce impurities during the process.

From Washington Post

A five-step water filtration system removes impurities and contaminants from the water, leaving clean water for the picky feline.

From Popular-Science

Cheap supplements sold on the Internet are more likely to have issues with unlabeled ingredients or impurities than ones sold in stores such as Costco or Whole Foods, which have a process for vetting supplement products, Israelsen says.

From Washington Post

In addition, there are impurities called “quenchers” that can stop an activator from working, even if all other conditions are right.

From Popular-Science

That means the process can run on clean renewable energy sources and would produce a stream of carbon dioxide free from fossil-fuel impurities.

From MIT Technology Review

It just recreates that whole dynamic that we had around the public option--liberal despair at Obama's impurity.

From The Daily Beast

Rather it would be more accurate to describe such outcomes as “impurely political”—with the emphasis on impurity.

From The Daily Beast

When parties lose power, activists ascribe the loss to the ideological impurity of their incumbent president.

From The Daily Beast

Now Sestak is having success running from the left with the same charge of ideological impurity.

From The Daily Beast

The principal impurity, and one which renders alum unfit for the use of the dyer, is iron.

From Project Gutenberg

Exemplify the sibilant impurity with such syllables as pish, false, traitress, miscreant.

From Project Gutenberg

I admired spotlessness, even though I could lay no claim to it, and hated impurity, as I hope I do now.

From Project Gutenberg

Is it not there that the evil spirits of impurity spread their nets for thoughtless and unsuspecting youth?

From Project Gutenberg

The court of Catharine de' Medici was noted for its impurity, as it was infamous for its recklessness of human life.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• contamination
• grime
• pollutant
• scum