cleanse

[ klenz ]
See synonyms for: cleansecleansedcleansing on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object),cleansed, cleans·ing.
  1. to make clean.

  2. to remove by or as if by cleaning: to cleanse sin from the soul.

verb (used without object),cleansed, cleans·ing.
  1. to become clean.

Origin of cleanse

1
before 900; Middle English clensen,Old English clǣnsian, equivalent to clǣneclean + -si- v. suffix + -an infinitive suffix

synonym study For cleanse

1. See clean.

Other words from cleanse

  • cleans·a·ble, adjective
  • re·cleanse, verb (used with object), re·cleansed, re·cleans·ing.
  • un·cleans·a·ble, adjective
  • un·cleansed, adjective
  • well-cleansed, adjective

Words that may be confused with cleanse

Words Nearby cleanse

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use cleanse in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cleanse

cleanse

/ (klɛnz) /


verb(tr)
  1. to remove dirt, filth, etc, from

  2. to remove guilt from

  1. to remove a group of people from (an area) by means of ethnic cleansing

Origin of cleanse

1
Old English clǣnsian; related to Middle Low German klēnsen; see clean

Derived forms of cleanse

  • cleansable, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012