cleanse

(klĕnz)

tr.v. cleansed, cleans·ing, cleans·es

a. To free from dirt, contamination, or impurities: cleansed the wound.

b. To treat (the body or an organ) with a regimen intended to remove impurities and promote health: drank vegetable juice for a week to cleanse her digestive system.

2. To purify morally or spiritually: cleanse the organization of corruption; cleansed of sin.

3. To subject to ethnic cleansing.

An act of cleansing: a cleanse of the digestive system.

Idiom:

cleanse the/one's palate

To clear the mouth of strong flavors: served sherbet between courses to cleanse the palate.

[Middle English clensen, from Old English clǣnsian, from clǣne, pure, clean.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

cleansing

(ˈklɛnzɪŋ)

adj

serving or intended to cleanse

an instance of cleaning something, esp its surface. See also ethnic cleansing

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun	1.	cleansing - the act of making something clean; "he gave his shoes a good cleaning" cleaning, cleanup improvement - the act of improving something; "their improvements increased the value of the property" disinfestation - the activity of getting rid of vermin spring-cleaning - the activity of cleaning a house thoroughly at the end of winter scrubbing, scouring, scrub - the act of cleaning a surface by rubbing it with a brush and soap and water dry cleaning - the act of cleaning (fabrics) with a solvent other than water sweeping - the act of cleaning with a broom purging, purge - an act of removing by cleansing; ridding of sediment or other undesired elements purification - the act of cleaning by getting rid of impurities sterilisation, sterilization - the procedure of making some object free of live bacteria or other microorganisms (usually by heat or chemical means) sanitisation, sanitization, sanitation - making something sanitary (free of germs) as by sterilizing depilation, epilation - the act of removing hair (as from an animal skin) washup, bathing - the act of washing yourself (or another person) housecleaning - the act of cleaning the rooms and furnishings of a house; "efficient housecleaning should proceed one room at a time"
Adj.	1.	cleansing - cleansing the body by washing; especially ritual washing of e.g. hands; "ablutionary rituals" ablutionary purifying - freeing from noxious matter; "filtration is a purifying agent"
	2.	cleansing - acting like an antiseptic purifying 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"

Translations

κάθαρση

lessiviel

cleansing

[ˈklenzɪŋ]

A. ADJ (for complexion) → limpiador (fig) → purificador

B. N → limpieza f

C. CPD cleansing cream N → crema f desmaquilladora
cleansing department N → departamento m de limpieza
cleansing lotion N → loción f limpiadora

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

cleansing

adj agent → Reinigungs-; cleansing cream/milk → Reinigungscreme f → /-milch f; cleansing lotion → Reinigungslotion f

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

cleansing

[ˈklɛnzɪŋ] n (see vb) → pulitura, purificazione f

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

Cleansing solution for contact lenses → Rensevæske til kontaktlinser → Puhdistusainetta piilolinsseille → 콘택트렌즈 세정액이요 → Rensevæske for kontaktlinser → Soro para lentes de contato → Linsvätska, tack → Lens solüsyonu → Dung dịch rửa kính áp tròng → 隐形眼镜清洗液

Collins Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

The unmanufactured sperm oil possesses a singularly cleansing virtue.

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But cleansing his feathers as often as he would, he could not change their color, while through want of food he perished.

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Who had begun the cleansing of the marble, and who had left it unfinished?

The partial cleansing of the monument had evidently been accomplished by a strange hand.

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This stream had been the good angel of my thoughts all the day, keeping them ever moving and ever fresh, cleansing and burnishing them, quite an open-air laundry of the mind.

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But as the priceless treasure too frequently hides at the bottom of a well, it needs some courage to dive for it, especially as he that does so will be likely to incur more scorn and obloquy for the mud and water into which he has ventured to plunge, than thanks for the jewel he procures; as, in like manner, she who undertakes the cleansing of a careless bachelor's apartment will be liable to more abuse for the dust she raises than commendation for the clearance she effects.

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If ever my scorn hath scattered mouldered words to the winds, and if I have come like a besom to cross-spiders, and as a cleansing wind to old charnel- houses:

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But of Leach's behaviour-- By the time I had finished cleansing the cabin he had taken care of Johnson.

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Just before him Tom lay motionless upon the sward; but the murderer minded him not a whit, cleansing his blood-stained knife the while upon a wisp of grass.

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Since this was done, the accumulated refuse collected from the periodical cleansings of the house, during a term of nearly three years--including, of course, the ashes from the fires kept burning, for the greater part of the year, in the library and the picture-gallery--have been poured upon the heap, and have buried the precious morsels of paper deeper and deeper, day by day.

View in context

With September just around the corner, a month typically associated with returning to routine, this is the perfect time of the year to start cleansing and detoxing all the food you've been eating all summer long.

Give it a Break

'If we have internal cleansing (in the PNP) probably the other agencies should also have internal cleansing,' he added.

PNP chief: Not far fetched for BIR kidnappings to be 'inside job'