sift
Americanverb (used with object)
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to separate and retain the coarse parts of (flour, ashes, etc.) with a sieve.
-
to scatter or sprinkle through or by means of a sieve.
to sift sugar onto cake.
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to separate by or as if by a sieve.
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to examine closely.
The detectives are still sifting the evidence.
- Synonyms:
- probe, search, inspect, scrutinize, sort
-
to question closely.
verb (used without object)
-
to sift something.
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to pass or fall through or as if through a sieve.
verb
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(tr) to sieve (sand, flour, etc) in order to remove the coarser particles
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to scatter (something) over a surface through a sieve
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(tr) to separate with or as if with a sieve; distinguish between
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(tr) to examine minutely
to sift evidence
-
(intr) to move as if through a sieve
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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siftsimple
-
siftssimple
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have siftedperfect
-
has siftedperfect
-
am siftingprogressive
-
are siftingprogressive
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is siftingprogressive
-
have been siftingperfect progressive
-
has been siftingperfect progressive
Past
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siftedsimple
-
had siftedperfect
-
was siftingprogressive
-
were siftingprogressive
-
had been siftingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of sift
before 900; Middle English siften, Old English siftan; cognate with Dutch, Middle Low German siften; akin to sieve
Explanation
To bake a cake, you sift the flour to get out the lumps. When you sift, you separate out one thing from another. When you sort through the mail looking for the bills or go through your photos to find that shot of your dog, that’s sifting, too. Detectives sift through piles of evidence when investigating crimes, and you might sift through the hundred applications you get from drummers eager to join your band, to find Ms. Right. When you're at the beach, you can sift sand through your fingers, and you might see big machines that sift the sand to clean it.
Vocabulary lists containing sift
Stairway To Leaven: Baking Vocabulary
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Holes
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Ender's Game
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In addition to contractors Boeing and Northrop Grumman, they include startups Picogrid and Sift.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026
“Scams vary in scale and process, but all result in the victim's participation in a fraudulent operation,” said Alexander Hall, a former fraudster and trust and safety architect at Sift.
From Salon • Apr. 2, 2025
Sift the cornstarch and cake flour into the bowl and whisk again until well combined.
From Washington Post • Sep. 2, 2022
Sift through it by looking first through academic databases to find high-quality sources relevant to your research.
From Textbooks • Dec. 21, 2021
Sift the dry ingredients together, and after the meal and milk have cooled stir the dry mixture into it.
From The Myrtle Reed Cook Book by Reed, Myrtle
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
