sift
Americanverb (used with object)
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to separate and retain the coarse parts of (flour, ashes, etc.) with a sieve.
-
to scatter or sprinkle through or by means of a sieve.
to sift sugar onto cake.
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to separate by or as if by a sieve.
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to examine closely.
The detectives are still sifting the evidence.
- Synonyms:
- probe, search, inspect, scrutinize, sort
-
to question closely.
verb (used without object)
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to sift something.
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to pass or fall through or as if through a sieve.
verb
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(tr) to sieve (sand, flour, etc) in order to remove the coarser particles
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to scatter (something) over a surface through a sieve
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(tr) to separate with or as if with a sieve; distinguish between
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(tr) to examine minutely
to sift evidence
-
(intr) to move as if through a sieve
Other Word Forms
- outsift verb (used with object)
- presift verb (used with object)
- resift verb (used with object)
- sifter noun
- unsifted adjective
Etymology
Origin of sift
before 900; Middle English siften, Old English siftan; cognate with Dutch, Middle Low German siften; akin to sieve
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.
Footage from the time showed him, visibly in shock, sifting through the rubble for items that belonged to his wife and baby daughter.
From Barron's
After a shooting in L.A.’s Fashion District, detectives sifted through encrypted messages to track down a sophisticated but clumsy band of thieves.
From Los Angeles Times
Investigators have been sifting through 40,000 leads since the 84-year-old was reported missing this month, but a breakthrough has eluded them despite emotional public appeals for help from her NBC presenter daughter.
From BBC
Armed with pickaxes and shovels, they have been sifting through the soil in scenes reminiscent of the gold rush that helped built South Africa's financial capital more than a century ago.
From BBC
Using these improved statistical models, the researchers derived analytical expressions for error and sift probabilities under pointing error, marking a first for the field.
From Science Daily
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.
