purify

verb

ˈpyu̇r-ə-ˌfī How to pronounce purify (audio)
Definition of purifynext
1
as in to purge
to free from moral guilt or blemish especially ceremonially Catholics go to confession to be purified

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to filter
to remove usually visible impurities from purify the water by distillation

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of purify The heavy snows purify the air and insulate the food warehouses, locking in the high humidity and stable chill necessary to nurture delicate winter koji and yeast strains without catastrophic temperature spikes. — Adam H. Graham, Condé Nast Traveler, 24 Aug. 2026 Pure Copper Charm, which comes in two adorable shapes, a heart or star, is a natural antimicrobial and releases purifying trace copper ions into vase water. — Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 Aug. 2026 But what if the water and nutrients could be purified from whey permeate and used for other purposes? — Idaho Statesman, 17 Aug. 2026 Once hydrogen is flowing from the ground, how will the gas be purified? — IEEE Spectrum, 11 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for purify
Recent Examples of Synonyms for purify
  1. purge
  2. filter
  3. clarify
  4. refine
  5. extract
  6. clean
Verb
  • Voting rights experts have expressed concern that misuse of the data could lead to legitimate voters being purged from rolls.
    — Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Existing law also blocks most states from systematically purging voters from their rolls within 90 days of an election, said David Becker, an election law expert who leads the Center for Election Innovation and Research.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of purge
Verb
  • Pure Bass Sound while actively filtering out unwanted background distractions.
    — Juhi Wadia, PC Magazine, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Advanced internal valves are specifically engineered to filter out high-frequency vibrations from coarse road surfaces.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of filter
Verb
  • Crash axes The UAE’s attorney general’s statement was the first time authorities have clarified the weapon the attacker used.
    — Azhar Sukri, CNBC, 3 Oct. 2026
  • Later, campus administration clarified that their initial communication had been sent erroneously and the funds were being held temporarily for review.
    — Tarini Mehta, Sacbee.com, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of clarify
Verb
  • Indonesia imposed a ban on nickel ore exports to encourage smelters to move refining operations to the country; the country is now pushing to attract more of the EV value chain, including car and battery manufacturing.
    — Angelica Ang, Fortune, 5 Oct. 2026
  • All well and good, but before this could be seriously considered for applications outside the lab, some important things need to be refined.
    — Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of refine
Verb
  • Much of the fear stems from Paramount's pledge to extract more than $6 billion in annual synergies within three years of closing the merger.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 7 Oct. 2026
  • When Blue Cross Blue Shield recently published research suggesting that hospitals use artificial intelligence tools to extract more money from insurers without providing additional care, people were mad.
    — Leah Pierson, STAT, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of extract
Verb
  • No blood was found on Machado’s body, which Lew said meant she had been cleaned.
    — Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 2 Oct. 2026
  • One of Stallone's earliest gigs was cleaning the lion cages at Central Park Zoo.
    — Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of clean

Browse Nearby Words

purifies
purify
purifying
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Cite this Entry

“Purify.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/purify. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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