purification

American  

[pyoor-uh-fi-kay-shuhn] / pjʊər ə fɪˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

• purifications
  plural

1. the act or process of making something pure and free of any contaminating, debasing, or foreign elements.

   We fund groundbreaking development projects like water purification and clean cookstove technology.

2. the act of making something free of guilt or evil.

   Purification of the soul brings freedom from hatred, selfishness, and greed.

3. the act or process of making something clean and fit for ceremonial or ritual use.

   At this early Shinto temple, the ceremonies consisted chiefly of ritual cleansings and purifications.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonpurification
  noun
• repurification
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• purifications
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of purification

First recorded in 1350–1400; from Latin pūrificātiōn-, stem of pūrificātiō “ritual cleansing”; see purify ( def. ), -ation ( def. )

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Explanation

Purification is the removal of impure elements from something. After purification, water is safe to drink. Most cities have a system of water purification, so people get clean fresh drinking water without any parasites or goldfish in it. Purification is when things are cleaned and made pure. Salt water must undergo purification before it's safe to drink. Some filters do a purification of the air to reduce allergens. In some religions, purification is the removal of sin, which is another type of cleansing. For example, sumo wrestlers throw salt in the ring for purification, as part of the tradition of the Shinto religion.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

purification purifications

Chambers said he worked with volunteers to distribute sleeping bags, water purification tools, food and essentials to communities cut off by collapsed bridges, travelling to the area by helicopter.

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026

The team believes it could eventually be used in solar-powered photocatalysis, indoor air purification systems, and low-intensity 3D printing technologies.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 26, 2026

I’m scheduled to tour purification facilities, pipelines and compression stations that process the methane and transport it to markets.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 12, 2026

She noted that over 90% of homes lack such purification systems.

From Barron's ● Apr. 16, 2026

Faraz, who spent the day with his dad trying to get their reverse-osmosis water purification system to turn urine into drinking water.

From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

One is an assay that would bypass laborious cell purifications and manipulations by detecting activated T cells in blood samples squirted into tubes premixed with bits of SARS-CoV-2 proteins.

From Scientific American ● May 19, 2022

He pacified his conscience by promising himself a compensatingly harder self-discipline, purifications the more complete and thorough.

From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley

The uncleanness of the third plague deranged the whole system of Egyptian worship, with its punctilious and elaborate purifications.

From The Expositor's Bible: The Book of Exodus by G. A. Chadwick

The candidates were prepared for participation by long periods of fasting and various purifications, moral and physical.

From The Eliminator; or, Skeleton Keys to Sacerdotal Secrets by Richard B. Westbrook

“Purifications” teaches how purifications are to be effected.

From Hebrew Literature by Epiphanius Wilson

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