Adjacent Words

Sieve definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

SIEVE, n. siv. An utensil for separating flour from bran, or the fine part of any pulverized or fine substance from the coarse, by the hand; as a fine sieve; a coarse sieve. It consists of a hoop with a hair bottom, and performs in the family the service of a bolter in a mill.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a strainer for separating lumps from powdered material or grading particles [syn: sieve, screen] v
1: examine in order to test suitability; "screen these samples"; "screen the job applicants" [syn: screen, screen out, sieve, sort]
2: check and sort carefully; "sift the information" [syn: sieve, sift]
3: separate by passing through a sieve or other straining device to separate out coarser elements; "sift the flour" [syn: sift, sieve, strain]
4: distinguish and separate out; "sift through the job candidates" [syn: sieve, sift]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English sive, from Old English sife; akin to Old High German sib sieve Date: before 12th century 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 II. verb (sieved; sieving) Date: 15th century sift

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. a utensil having a perforated or meshed bottom for separating solids or coarse material from liquids or fine particles, or for reducing a soft solid to a fine pulp. --v.tr. 1 put through or sift with a sieve. 2 examine (evidence etc.) to select or separate. Phrases and idioms: head like a sieve colloq. a memory that retains little. Derivatives: sievelike adj. Etymology: OE sife f. WG

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Sieve Sieve, n. [OE. sive, AS. sife; akin to D. zeef, zift, OHG. sib, G. sieb. [root]151a. Cf. Sift.] 1. A utensil for separating the finer and coarser parts of a pulverized or granulated substance from each other. It consist of a vessel, usually shallow, with the bottom perforated, or made of hair, wire, or the like, woven in meshes. ``In a sieve thrown and sifted.'' --Chaucer. 2. A kind of coarse basket. --Simmonds. Sieve cells (Bot.), cribriform cells. See under Cribriform.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(sieves, sieving, sieved) 1. A sieve is a tool used for separating solids from liquids or larger pieces of something from smaller pieces. It consists of a metal or plastic ring with a wire or plastic net underneath, which the liquid or smaller pieces pass through. Press the raspberries through a fine sieve to form a puree. N-COUNT 2. When you sieve a substance, you put it through a sieve. Cream the margarine in a small bowl, then sieve the icing sugar into it. = sift VERB: V n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Bolt.

Moby Thesaurus

analyze, analyzer, arabesque, assort, basketry, basketwork, bolt, bolter, breaker, cancellation, categorize, centrifuge, clack, clarifier, clarify, classify, clear, colander, collate, contradistinguish, cordon, cordon off, cradle, cribble, cribriformity, cribrosity, cross-hatching, crossing-out, cull out, cutter, decrassify, demarcate, demark, depurate, differentiate, discriminate, distill, distinguish, divide, draw the line, edulcorate, elute, essentialize, extract, filigree, filter, filtrate, fret, fretwork, ghettoize, gin, gossiper, gradate, grade, grate, grating, grid, gridiron, grille, grillwork, group, hachure, hatching, honeycomb, insulate, interlacement, intertexture, intertwinement, isolate, keep apart, keep aside, lace, lacery, lacework, lacing, lattice, latticework, lay aside, leach, lixiviate, lixiviator, mark the interface, mesh, meshes, meshwork, net, netting, network, percolate, percolator, pick out, plexure, plexus, porosity, porousness, purifier, purify, put aside, quarantine, quidnunc, raddle, rank, rectify, refine, refiner, refinery, reticle, reticulation, reticule, reticulum, riddle, rocker, rumormonger, scandalmonger, screen, screen out, screening, seclude, segregate, select, separate, separator, set a limit, set apart, set aside, set off, sever, severalize, sieve out, sievelikeness, sift, sift out, sifter, size, sort, sort out, sorter, spiritualize, split hairs, sponge, strain, strainer, stripper, subdivide, sublimate, sublime, subordinate, subtilize, tabby, talebearer, texture, thrash, thresh, tissue, tracery, trellis, trelliswork, try, wattle, weave, weaving, web, webbing, webwork, weft, wicker, wickerwork, winnow, winnowing basket, winnowing fan, winnowing machine