pure
Americanadjective
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free from anything of a different, inferior, or contaminating kind; free from extraneous matter.
pure gold;
pure water.
- Synonyms:
- immaculate, unstained, unalloyed, unadulterated, unmixed
-
unmodified by an admixture; simple or homogeneous.
-
of unmixed descent or ancestry.
a pure breed of dog.
-
free from foreign or inappropriate elements.
pure Attic Greek.
-
clear; free from blemishes.
pure skin.
-
(of literary style) straightforward; unaffected.
-
abstract or theoretical (opposed to applied).
pure science.
-
without any discordant quality; clear and true.
pure tones in music.
-
absolute; utter; sheer.
to sing for pure joy.
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being that and nothing else; mere.
a pure accident.
-
clean, spotless, or unsullied.
pure hands.
-
untainted with evil; innocent.
pure in heart.
-
physically chaste; virgin.
-
ceremonially or ritually clean.
-
free of or without guilt; guiltless.
-
independent of sense or experience.
pure knowledge.
-
Biology, Genetics.
-
containing only one characteristic for a trait.
-
Phonetics. monophthongal.
adjective
-
not mixed with any extraneous or dissimilar materials, elements, etc
pure nitrogen
-
free from tainting or polluting matter; clean; wholesome
pure water
-
free from moral taint or defilement
pure love
-
(prenominal) (intensifier)
pure stupidity
a pure coincidence
-
(of a subject, etc) studied in its theoretical aspects rather than for its practical applications Compare applied
pure mathematics
pure science
-
(of a vowel) pronounced with more or less unvarying quality without any glide; monophthongal
-
(of a consonant) not accompanied by another consonant
-
of supposedly unmixed racial descent
-
genetics biology breeding true for one or more characteristics; homozygous
-
music
-
(of a sound) composed of a single frequency without overtones
-
(of intervals in the system of just intonation) mathematically accurate in respect to the ratio of one frequency to another
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Related Words
See clean.
Other Word Forms
- hyperpure adjective
- hyperpurely adverb
- hyperpureness noun
- pureness noun
- superpure adjective
- unpure adjective
- unpurely adverb
- unpureness noun
Etymology
Origin of pure
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English pur, from Old French, from Latin pūrus “clean, unmixed, plain, pure”
Explanation
The adjective pure describes something that's made of only one substance and is not mixed with anything else. For example, your favorite soft, warm winter scarf might be made from pure merino wool. Anything that's uncontaminated by extra, unnecessary, or unclean substances is pure. You can swim in pure water or wear a necklace that's made of pure silver. Pure can also mean "complete" or "absolute," especially when it describes happiness. A religious meaning of pure is "free from sin", good or wholesome. The Latin word purus, "clean or unmixed," is the root of pure.
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.
Machinery whirs loudly as a rare-earth mixture is bathed in hydrochloric acid and gradually separated into pure oxides that can be shipped to customers.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 26, 2026
“This is a leverage seeking exercise, pure and simple,” said Behnam Ben Taleblu, at The Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington think tank which has opposed Iran’s regime.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 21, 2026
While some of the drive-offs were people with no means to pay, Josh said most was just "pure theft".
From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026
Through that partnership, Horizon now has linked itself to one of the most-watched pure plays in the industry.
From Barron's • Apr. 17, 2026
It was pure luck, and a miracle, that would save them.
From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone
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.
