Purity

The degree to which a substance is free from unwanted material.

Reach for it when reporting composition against a defined technical or practical standard

Independent testing confirmed the purity of the stored drinking water.

• everyday

  cleanliness

  when absence of dirt or contamination in use is central

  not when Cleanliness is not a chemical measure and does not mean unmixed composition.

• professional

  concentration

  when the proportion of one component is measured

  not when High concentration can coexist with important contaminants.

• professional

  refinement

  when processing has removed unwanted material

  not when Refinement can change the substance and may not produce higher purity.

• professional

  uncontaminated state

  when freedom from a named contaminant is the exact claim

  not when The phrase is clumsy and does not cover mixtures that are intentionally pure enough.

The quality of being sincere or wholly one kind.

Reach for it when describing unmixed feeling or intent with caution

The purity of her delight was visible when the old instrument sounded again.

• warm

  sincerity

  when genuine feeling matters more than moral perfection

  not when Sincerity can coexist with mixed motives or mistaken beliefs.

• warm

  wholeness

  when an experience feels integrated rather than divided

  not when Wholeness concerns integration, not lack of mixture or impurity.

• formal

  innocence

  when absence of wrongdoing is the intended idea

  not when Innocence is a legal or moral claim and should not substitute for sincerity.

• literary

  unalloyed quality

  when elevated prose stresses lack of mixture

  not when The metaphor is rare and can make ordinary emotion sound artificial.

• contamination
• adulteration
• corruption
• impurity

• water purity

  Water purity was checked at the spring and every storage tank.

• high purity

  The laboratory requires a high purity standard for the reference material.

• purity of intent

  Purity of intent cannot be assumed from a generous result alone.

• degree of purity

  The certificate states the degree of purity and the testing method.

• Pure adj.

Purity needs a named material standard. Applied to people or cultures, purity language can stigmatize difference and should usually be replaced by a specific quality.

• wiktionary, English noun sense: freedom from contamination or mixture ↗opens in a new tab for meaning 1 · retrieved 2026-07-26
• wiktionary, English noun figurative sense: freedom from mixed or corrupting elements ↗opens in a new tab for meaning 2 · retrieved 2026-07-26

The definition and the example on this page are written here. The dictionaries above ground which meaning is being described, not the wording.