Standard Lemma guide

impurity

noun · 5 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • US: /ɪmˈpjɝɪti/
  • US: /ɪmˈpjuɹɪti/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: IH2 M P Y UH1 R AH0 T IY0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The condition of being impure; because of contamination, pollution, adulteration or insufficient purification.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • Even animals in the Jewish system cause impurity only when they are dead.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: impureness

Antonyms: purity

2

noun

Meaning 2

A component or additive that renders something else impure.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • The impurities in the iron ore made extraction of the iron very difficult.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: adulterant, contamination, taint, adulterator, contaminant, contaminator, impurity, pollutant, pollution, sophisticant

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

A state of immorality or sin; especially the weakness of the flesh: inchastity.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • With his cheating, lying and stealing, he epitomised the impurity of humanity.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: depravity, perversion, wickedness, baseness, corruption, defilement, degeneracy, degradation, depravation, depravedness, impurity, iniquity, lewdity, malignity, misdoing, misguilt, obliquity, peccability, pollution, pravity, sin, sinfulness, turpitude, vitiation, wrongdoing

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

the condition of being impure

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: impureness

Antonyms: purity

Broader terms: condition, status

Narrower terms: adulteration, debasement, admixture, alloy, contamination, taint, dirtiness, putridity, pollution

5

noun

Meaning 5

worthless or dangerous material that should be removed

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • there were impurities in the water

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: dross

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: waste, waste material, waste matter, waste product

History

Etymology

From impure + -ity. From Middle French impurité, from Latin impuritas.

Across languages

Translations

61 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: замърсяване (zamǎrsjavane) — the condition of being impure
  • Catalan: impuresa — the condition of being impure
  • Chinese Mandarin: 不潔 /不洁 (bùjié) — the condition of being impure
  • Dutch: onzuiverheid — the condition of being impure
  • Dutch: onreinheid — the condition of being impure
  • French: impureté — the condition of being impure
  • German: Unreinheit — the condition of being impure
  • German: Verunreinigung — the condition of being impure
  • Gothic: 𐌿𐌽𐌷𐍂𐌰𐌹𐌽𐌹𐌸𐌰 (unhrainiþa) — the condition of being impure
  • Gothic: 𐌿𐌽𐌷𐍂𐌰𐌹𐌽𐌴𐌹 (unhrainei) — the condition of being impure
  • Gujarati: અશુદ્ધિ (aśuddhi) — the condition of being impure
  • Hungarian: tisztátalanság — the condition of being impure
  • Japanese: 不純 (fujun) — the condition of being impure
  • Japanese: 汚れ (kegare) — the condition of being impure
  • Latin: impūritās — the condition of being impure
  • Macedonian: нечистотија (nečistotija) — the condition of being impure
  • Macedonian: примесност (primesnost) — the condition of being impure
  • Macedonian: глотеж (glotež) — the condition of being impure
  • Polish: nieczystość — the condition of being impure
  • Portuguese: impuridade — the condition of being impure
  • Portuguese: impureza — the condition of being impure
  • Romanian: impuritate — the condition of being impure
  • Romanian: necurățenie — the condition of being impure
  • Russian: нечистота́ (nečistotá) — the condition of being impure
  • Spanish: impuridad — the condition of being impure
  • Tagalog: kaditagnasan — the condition of being impure
  • Bulgarian: онечистване (onečistvane) — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Catalan: impuresa — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Chinese Mandarin: 雜質 /杂质 (zázhì, zázhí) — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Dutch: onzuiverheid — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Dutch: bezoedeling — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • German: Unreinheit — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • German: Fremdkörper — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Greek: ρύπος (rýpos) — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Ancient Greek: ἀκαθαρσία (akatharsía) — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Hungarian: szennyeződés — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Japanese: 不純物 (fujunbutsu) — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Korean: 불순물 (bulsunmul) — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Macedonian: примеса (primesa) — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Norwegian Bokmål: urenhet — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Norwegian Bokmål: ureinhet — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Portuguese: impureza — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Portuguese: impuridade — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Russian: при́месь (prímesʹ) — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Russian: загрязне́ние (zagrjaznénije) — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Sanskrit: रेपस् (repas) — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Spanish: impureza — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Spanish: impuridad — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Turkish: katışıklık — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Turkish: safsızlık — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Ukrainian: до́мішка (dómiška) — a component or additive that renders something else impure
  • Bulgarian: нецеломъдреност (necelomǎdrenost) — a state of immorality
  • Dutch: bezoedeling — a state of immorality
  • Dutch: onreinheid — a state of immorality
  • German: Unreinheit — a state of immorality
  • Greek: ανηθικότητα (anithikótita) — a state of immorality
  • Hungarian: erkölcstelenség — a state of immorality
  • Japanese: 汚れ (kegare) — a state of immorality
  • Portuguese: impureza — a state of immorality
  • Portuguese: impudor — a state of immorality
  • Russian: нечистопло́тность (nečistoplótnostʹ) — a state of immorality
Real reading context

impurity in complete knowledge articles