sieve

American  

[siv] / sɪv /

noun

1. an instrument with a meshed or perforated bottom, used for separating coarse from fine parts of loose matter, for straining liquids, etc., especially one with a circular frame and fine meshes or perforations.

2. a person who cannot keep a secret.

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verb (used with or without object)

sieved, sieving

1. to put or force through a sieve; sift.

sieve British  

/ sɪv /

noun

1. a device for separating lumps from powdered material, straining liquids, grading particles, etc, consisting of a container with a mesh or perforated bottom through which the material is shaken or poured

2. rare a person who gossips and spreads secrets

3. a very poor memory

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verb

1. to pass or cause to pass through a sieve

2. to separate or remove (lumps, materials, etc) by use of a sieve

Other Word Forms

• sievelike adjective
• unsieved adjective

Etymology

Origin of sieve

First recorded before 900; Middle English sive, Old English sife; cognate with Dutch zeef, German Sieb; sift

Compare meaning

How does sieve compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• sieve vs. strainer
• colander vs. sieve

Explanation

A sieve is a mesh strainer used to separate lumps and clumps from the fine material. Sieves are handy for everything from sifting flour to prospecting for gold — anything where you need to separate the big from the small. If you’re an archaeologist, you've probably used various sorts of sifters and shakers to sieve through the soil to recover even the tiniest artifacts. If your interests run more to building sandcastles, you’ve probably got a sieve in your beach bag, along with the shovels and pails. If you keep forgetting things, you can describe your "mind as a sieve," since it doesn’t seem to hold much.

Example Sentences

The average American home is about as airtight and well-insulated as a metal sieve.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 21, 2025

A miracle required when your defence is populated by jittery players and leaks like a sieve.

From BBC • Aug. 28, 2025

That could have maybe turned into something, but Chelsea wants the sieve, she wants to pour down the plug hole.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2025

It’s a kind of medievalism, in other words, that seems to have passed through a sieve of Jane Austen or Emily Brontë; now you can see it in the works of medieval-themed romantasy novels.

From Slate • Feb. 21, 2025

One corner of the kitchen ceiling leaked like a sieve.

From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls

Related Words

• colander