ENGLISH
REFERENCE

pure

adj.
B2 Upper Intermediate Oxford US //ˈpjʊɹ// UK //pjˈɔː// pure Archaic General-service Slang

adj. not mixed with anything else. You use this to describe something that is clean, natural, or 100% one thing.

adj. consisting entirely of one substance or element; free from any contamination or adulteration. Often used to describe abstract concepts that are absolute or unmitigated.


SIMPLE

The ring is made of pure gold.

CONTEXTUAL

The mountain air felt pure and refreshing after a week in the polluted city.

COMPLEX

The mathematician sought a pure solution that relied solely on logic rather than empirical data or messy real-world approximations.

Synonyms
Antonyms
Origin

From Middle English pure, pur, from Old French pur, from Latin pūrus (“clean, free from dirt or filth, unmixed, plain”), from Proto-Indo-European *pewH- (“to cleanse, purify”). Displaced native Middle English lutter (“pure, clear, sincere”) (from Old English hlūtor, hluttor), Middle English skere (“pure, sheer, clear”) (from Old English scǣre and Old Norse skǣr), Middle English schir (“clear, pure”) (from Old English scīr), Middle English smete, smeate (“pure, refined”) (from Old English smǣte; compare Old English mǣre (“pure”)).

Usage

Typically precedes the noun it modifies; can be used figuratively to mean 'complete' or 'total'.

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