sieve

1 of 2

noun

: a device with meshes or perforations through which finer particles of a mixture (as of ashes, flour, or sand) of various sizes may be passed to separate them from coarser ones, through which the liquid may be drained from liquid-containing material, or through which soft materials may be forced for reduction to fine particles

sieve

2 of 2

verb

sieved; sieving
: sift

Examples of sieve in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
White beans Cannabis olive oil* Toasted Italian bread Quarter onion, peel garlic, and place all ingredients into a large stockpot, bring to a boil and reduce to simmer for 45 minutes, strain with a fine sieve. Tribune Content Agency, The Mercury News, 27 Sep. 2024 Individual fossil hunters can bring a sieve or colander to the coast to help sift through sediment. Carlyn Kranking, Smithsonian Magazine, 17 Sep. 2024
Verb
Stock screens Morgan Stanley did a few stock screens to sieve out those set to benefit. Weizhen Tan, CNBC, 30 Sep. 2024 The sieving methods cannot be generalized so far as to push the result down to N = 2, however. Manon Bischoff, Scientific American, 7 June 2024 See all Example Sentences for sieve 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sieve.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English sive, from Old English sife; akin to Old High German sib sieve

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of sieve was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near sieve

Cite this Entry

“Sieve.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sieve. Accessed 12 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

sieve

1 of 2 noun
: a device with meshes or holes to separate finer particles from coarser ones or solids from liquids

sieve

2 of 2 verb
sieved; sieving
: to put through a sieve : sift
sieve the tomatoes to remove the seeds

More from Merriam-Webster on sieve

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