impurity

[ im-pyoor-i-tee ]

/ ɪmˈpyʊər ɪ ti /

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See synonyms for: impurity / impurities on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural im·pu·ri·ties for 2.

the quality or state of being impure.

Often impurities. something that is or makes impure: After the flood the authorities warned against impurities in the drinking water.

OTHER WORDS FOR impurity

1 contamination, pollution, taint.

See synonyms for impurity on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of impurity

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

How to use impurity in a sentence

Water has to be pushed through a semipermeable membrane that blocks the salt and other impurities from going through.
Sun+Water= High Tech Caribbean Luxury At The Cusinart Resort|The Daily Beast|June 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Sometimes the heroin can be cut with impurities that make people sick.
Legal, Regulated Heroin Could Have Saved Philip Seymour Hoffman|Valerie Vande Panne|February 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The celeb-endorsed craze promises to flush your body of icky impurities with a flood of juice.
The Truth About Cleansing|Lizzie Crocker|June 28, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The veins are mostly, especially in the lower cuttings, more free from impurities than those of Coleraine.
Asbestos|Robert H. Jones

Due allowance must therefore be made for such impurities which are sometimes present in very large quantity.
Elements of Agricultural Chemistry|Thomas Anderson
Fortunately, childhood is protected by a resisting candour, by an enamel over which all impurities glide.
The Nabob|Alphonse Daudet
Remove all the impurities from the surface of the zinc when it is melted, with a metal spoon or piece of tin.
The Boy Mechanic, Book 2|Various
It is a fact that the injurious effects are in the acetanilid itself and not in the impurities it may occasionally contain.
The Propaganda for Reform in Proprietary Medicines, Vol. 1 of 2|Various

British Dictionary definitions for impurity

impurity

/ (ɪmˈpjʊərɪtɪ) /

noun plural -ties

the quality of being impure

an impure thing, constituent, or elementimpurities in the water

electronics a small quantity of an element added to a pure semiconductor crystal to control its electrical conductivitySee also acceptor (def. 2), donor (def. 5)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

impurity

OTHER WORDS FOR impurity

Origin of impurity

Words related to impurity

How to use impurity in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for impurity