purify

[pyoo r-uh-fahy]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR purify ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), pu·ri·fied, pu·ri·fy·ing.

to make pure; free from anything that debases, pollutes, adulterates, or contaminates: to purify metals.

to free from foreign, extraneous, or objectionable elements: to purify a language.

to free from guilt or evil.

to clear or purge (usually followed by of or from).

to make clean for ceremonial or ritual use.

verb (used without object), pu·ri·fied, pu·ri·fy·ing.

to become pure.

Nearby words

Origin of purify

1250–1300; Middle English purifien < Middle French purifier < Latin pūrificāre. See pure, -ify

Related forms

pu·ri·fi·ca·tion, nounpu·rif·i·ca·to·ry

[pyoo-rif-i-kuh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] /pyʊˈrɪf ɪ kəˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i/, adjectivepu·ri·fi·er, nounnon·pu·ri·fi·ca·tion, noun

non·pu·ri·fy·ing, adjectivere·pu·ri·fi·ca·tion, nounre·pu·ri·fy, verb, re·pu·ri·fied, re·pu·ri·fy·ing.self-pu·ri·fy·ing, adjectiveun·pu·ri·fied, adjectiveun·pu·ri·fy·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for purify

"We have an Islamic government, an interior ministry trying to purify its image, and a conservative masculine society," he says.
Egypt’s Growing Gay-Rights Movement|Bel Trew|May 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
“I picture scientists finding new ways to purify water, or diagnose disease,” Sindi says.
Rebel With a Cause|Abigail Pesta|October 21, 2011|DAILY BEAST
From just past the city limits came Ernest Hemingway to purify the American language and create another heroic legend.
Obamaville|Don Rose|November 6, 2008|DAILY BEAST
The simplest is water; and water can purify many things; but there are some things which water cannot cleanse.
The Preacher and His Models|James Stalker

Sulphur to purify the blood may be taken three times a week—a thimbleful in a glass of milk before breakfast.
Searchlights on Health: Light on Dark Corners|B.G. Jefferis
But, to change and purify my feelings, preparations were already made.
Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship and Travels, Vol. I (of 2)|Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
In Chhattīsgarh a new convert is shaved and the other Pankas wash their feet over him in order to purify him.
The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India - Volume IV of IV|R.V. Russell
He will now pour himself out in a rhapsody of praise of tears, which purify and refresh the soul, and open it to the love of God.
The Mediaeval Mind (Volume I of II)|Henry Osborn Taylor

British Dictionary definitions for purify

purify

verb -fies, -fying or -fied

to free (something) of extraneous, contaminating, or debasing matter

(tr) to free (a person, etc) from sin or guilt

(tr) to make clean, as in a ritual, esp the churching of women after childbirth

Derived Formspurification, nounpurificatory (ˈpjʊərɪfɪˌkeɪtərɪ), adjective

Word Origin for purify

C14: from Old French purifier, from Late Latin pūrificāre to cleanse, from pūrus pure + facere to make

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

Word Origin and History for purify

purify

early 14c., "free from spiritual pollution," from Old French purefier "purify, cleanse, refine" (12c.), from Latin purificare "to make pure," from purus "pure" (see pure) + root of facere "to make" (see factitious). Meaning "free from extraneous matter" is recorded from mid-15c. Related: Purified; purifying.

purify

verb (used with object), pu·ri·fied, pu·ri·fy·ing.

verb (used without object), pu·ri·fied, pu·ri·fy·ing.

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Origin of purify

Examples from the Web for purify

purify

verb -fies, -fying or -fied

Word Origin for purify

purify