distil
Americanverb (used with or without object)
verb
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to subject to or undergo distillation See also rectify
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to purify, separate, or concentrate, or be purified, separated, or concentrated by distillation
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to obtain or be obtained by distillation
to distil whisky
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to exude or give off (a substance) in drops or small quantities
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(tr) to extract the essence of as if by distillation
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of distil
C14: from Latin dēstillāre to distil, from de- + stillāre to drip
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 Odones approached Croda, which had large manufacturing plants in Hull, and the chemist Don Suddaby, who was persuaded to distil the formula.
From BBC • Dec. 14, 2025
It was given to CMAL, who then used a design firm to distil this into a 130-page document which was sent to all the bidders.
From BBC • Nov. 3, 2023
Cleverly said any attempt to distil the relationship down to a single word or a sound bite was fundamentally flawed.
From Reuters • Aug. 30, 2023
“It’s like, hipster neoclassicism. I think an artist’s role is to weave the collective human experience into a narrative; to distil the most interesting aspects for posterity.”
From The Guardian • Jul. 20, 2019
For the prevailing force, within the Boston walls, the supreme magic anything was to distil, just melted into another connection which flung a soft mantle as over the whole show.
From Notes of a Son and Brother by James, Henry
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.
