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purifying

   Also found in: Medical, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.01 sec.
pu·ri·fy  (pyr-f)
v. pu·ri·fied, pu·ri·fy·ing, pu·ri·fies
v.tr.
1. To rid of impurities; cleanse.
2. To rid of foreign or objectionable elements.
3. To free from sin, guilt, or other defilement.
v.intr.
To become clean or pure.
[Middle English purifien, from Old French purifier, from Latin prificre : prus, clean; see pure + -ficre, -fy.]
pu·rifi·ca·tory (py-rf-k-tôr, -tr) adj.
puri·fier n.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Adj.1.purifying - serving to purge or rid of sin; "purgatorial rites"
purgatorial, purging
2.purifying - freeing from noxious matter; "filtration is a purifying agent"
adulterant, adulterating - making impure or corrupt by adding extraneous materials; "the adulterating effect of extraneous materials"
3.purifying - acting like an antiseptic
cleansing
antiseptic - thoroughly clean and free of or destructive to disease-causing organisms; "doctors in antiseptic green coats"; "the antiseptic effect of alcohol"; "it is said that marjoram has antiseptic qualities"
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? Mentioned in ? References in classic literature
 
Chairman, before we bend to our noble task of purifying politics, in the interest of good government I wish to say a word of the untoward events of last evening.
Fantastic-Fables by Bierce, Ambrose View in context
After a sufficient quantity has thus been collected, the oil undergoes a purifying process, and is then poured into the small spherical shells of the nuts of the moo-tree, which are hollowed out to receive it.
Typee by Melville, Herman View in context
The matter is by no means simple; it is not easy to conceive of a means of purifying the literature of the past without weakening it, and even falsifying it, but it is best to own that it is in all respects just what it is, and not to feign it otherwise.
My Literary Passions by Howells,William Dean View in context
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