pure

Main Entry:: pure
Pronunciation:: \ˈpyu̇r\
Function:: adjective
Inflected Form(s):: pur·er; pur·est
Etymology:: Middle English pur, from Anglo-French, from Latin purus; akin to Old High German fowen to sift, Sanskrit punāti he cleanses, Middle Irish úr fresh, new
Date:: 14th century

1 a (1): unmixed with any other matter <pure gold> (2): free from dust, dirt, or taint <pure springwater> (3): spotless , stainless b: free from harshness or roughness and being in tune —used of a musical tone cof a vowel : characterized by no appreciable alteration of articulation during utterance2 a: being thus and no other : sheer , unmitigated <pure folly> b (1): abstract , theoretical <pure research> (2): a priori <pure mechanics> c: not directed toward exposition of reality or solution of practical problems <pure literature> d: being nonobjective and to be appraised on formal and technical qualities only <pure form>3 a (1): free from what vitiates, weakens, or pollutes (2): containing nothing that does not properly belong b: free from moral fault or guilt c: marked by chastity : continent d (1): of pure blood and unmixed ancestry (2): homozygous in and breeding true for one or more characters e: ritually clean4: having exactly the talents or skills needed for a particular role <a pure shooter in basketball>

synonyms see chaste

— pure·ness noun

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