Standard Lemma guide

purify

verb · 6 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.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈpjʊəɹɪfaɪ/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈpjɔːɹɪfaɪ/
  • General-American: /ˈpjʊɹɪfaɪ/
  • General-American: /ˈpjɝɪfaɪ/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: P Y UH1 R AH0 F AY2 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

verb

Meaning 1

To cleanse, or rid of impurities.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To free from guilt or sin.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To become pure.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

remove impurities from, increase the concentration of, and separate through the process of distillation

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • purify the water

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: sublimate, make pure, distill

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: better, improve, amend, ameliorate, meliorate

Narrower terms: refine, rectify, purge

5

verb

Meaning 5

make pure or free from sin or guilt

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • he left the monastery purified

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: purge, sanctify

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: change, alter, modify

Narrower terms: spiritualize, spiritualise, lustrate

6

verb

Meaning 6

become clean or pure or free of guilt and sin

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • The hippies came to the ashram in order to purify

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: change

History

Etymology

From Middle English purifien, purifyen, from Old French purifier, purifiier, from Latin pūrificō, pūrificāre, from pūrus (“pure; clean”).

Across languages

Translations

75 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Aghwan: 𐕌𐕒𐕡𐕟𐕒𐕡𐕙𐔱𐔼𐔺𐔴𐕚𐕒𐕡𐕎 (muc̣'urbiyesun) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Arabic: صَفَّى (ṣaffā) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Armenian: զտել (ztel) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Breton: glanaat — cleanse something of impurities
  • Bulgarian: пречиствам (prečistvam) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Catalan: purificar — cleanse something of impurities
  • Chinese Mandarin: 使純淨 /使纯净 (shǐ chúnjìng) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Chinese Mandarin: 使潔淨 /使洁净 (shǐ jiéjìng) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Chinese Mandarin: 純化 /纯化 (chúnhuà) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Dutch: zuiveren — cleanse something of impurities
  • Egyptian: q-b-H-W15 (qbḥ) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Esperanto: purigi — cleanse something of impurities
  • Finnish: puhdistaa — cleanse something of impurities
  • Finnish: kirkastaa — cleanse something of impurities
  • French: purifier — cleanse something of impurities
  • Friulian: purificâ — cleanse something of impurities
  • Galician: purificar — cleanse something of impurities
  • German: reinigen — cleanse something of impurities
  • Gothic: 𐌷𐍂𐌰𐌹𐌽𐌾𐌰𐌽 (hrainjan) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Greek: καθαρίζω (katharízo) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Ancient Greek: καθαρίζω (katharízō) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Ancient Greek: ἁγνίζω (hagnízō) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Hebrew: טיהר (tihér) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Hungarian: megtisztít — cleanse something of impurities
  • Ido: purigar — cleanse something of impurities
  • Irish: íonaigh — cleanse something of impurities
  • Irish: íonghlan — cleanse something of impurities
  • Italian: purificare — cleanse something of impurities
  • Kazakh: тазарту (tazartu) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Kazakh: тазалау (tazalau) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Khmer: បន្សុទ្ធ (bɑnsot) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Latin: purifico — cleanse something of impurities
  • Latin: abluō — cleanse something of impurities
  • Māori: whakaparakore — cleanse something of impurities
  • Māori: whakahoromata — cleanse something of impurities
  • Nepali: शुद्ध बनाउनु (śuddha banāunu) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Nepali: निर्मलीकरण (nirmalīkaraṇ) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Persian: خالص کردن (xâles kardan) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Persian: پالودن (pâludan) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Piedmontese: purifiché — cleanse something of impurities
  • Polish: oczyszczać — cleanse something of impurities
  • Polish: oczyścić — cleanse something of impurities
  • Portuguese: purificar — cleanse something of impurities
  • Russian: очища́ть (očiščátʹ) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Russian: очи́стить (očístitʹ) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Sanskrit: पवयति (pavayati) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Spanish: purificar — cleanse something of impurities
  • Spanish: depurar — cleanse something of impurities
  • Swahili: takasa — cleanse something of impurities
  • Swedish: rena — cleanse something of impurities
  • Thai: ทําให้บริสุทธิ์ — cleanse something of impurities
  • Thai: ชําระล้าง — cleanse something of impurities
  • Tibetan: ལྷད་མེད་བཟོས (lhad med bzos) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Turkish: arınmak — cleanse something of impurities
  • Ukrainian: очища́ти (očyščáty) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Ukrainian: очи́стити (očýstyty) — cleanse something of impurities
  • Welsh: puro — cleanse something of impurities
  • Welsh: pureiddio — cleanse something of impurities
  • Welsh: glanhau — cleanse something of impurities
  • Welsh: coethi — cleanse something of impurities
  • Welsh: teru — cleanse something of impurities
  • Aghwan: 𐕌𐕒𐕡𐕟𐕒𐕡𐕙𐔱𐔼𐔺𐔴𐕚𐕒𐕡𐕎 (muc̣'urbiyesun) — free someone from guilt or sin
  • Ngazidja Comorian: utwahirisha — free someone from guilt or sin
  • Dutch: reinigen — free someone from guilt or sin
  • Esperanto: senpekigi — free someone from guilt or sin
  • Esperanto: pekliberigi — free someone from guilt or sin
  • French: purifier — free someone from guilt or sin
  • German: rein machen — free someone from guilt or sin
  • Gothic: 𐌷𐍂𐌰𐌹𐌽𐌾𐌰𐌽 (hrainjan) — free someone from guilt or sin
  • Greek: εξαγνίζω (exagnízo) — free someone from guilt or sin
  • Ancient Greek: ἁγνίζω (hagnízō) — free someone from guilt or sin
  • Hungarian: megtisztít — free someone from guilt or sin
  • Hungarian: feloldoz — free someone from guilt or sin
  • Sanskrit: पवयति (pavayati) — free someone from guilt or sin
  • Swahili: kusafisha — free someone from guilt or sin