cleanse
Americanverb (used with object)
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to make clean.
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to remove by or as if by cleaning.
to cleanse sin from the soul.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to remove dirt, filth, etc, from
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to remove guilt from
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to remove a group of people from (an area) by means of ethnic cleansing
Related Words
See clean.
Other Word Forms
- cleansable adjective
- recleanse verb (used with object)
- uncleansable adjective
- uncleansed adjective
- well-cleansed adjective
Etymology
Origin of cleanse
before 900; Middle English clensen, Old English clǣnsian, equivalent to clǣne clean + -si- v. suffix + -an infinitive suffix
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.
The idea of a tube up my tuchus didn’t scare me, nor did the notorious prep of drinking a foul-tasting liquid to cleanse your intestinal tract.
From Los Angeles Times
Dr. Ilko argues that Guglielmo's reputation as a dragon slayer came from his role in cleansing the environment and restoring the valley's productivity.
From Science Daily
Dancing to drums in downtown Yangon, the crowd of nationalist activists and saffron-robed monks twirled miniature national flags and toted banners denying accusations of ethnic cleansing being levelled at The Hague.
From Barron's
Not one of those good cleansing ones he’d just learned about.
From Literature
Mid Ulster Council said that because the lane is close to the town centre, it "periodically arranges cleansing of the area".
From BBC
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.
