English → Latin
“purify” in Latin
pūrgōto clean, cleanse, clear, purge, purify; to exculpate, justify, vindicate, clear someone's name; to expiate, lustraterepūrgōto cleanse againexpūrgōto purge, cleanse, purify; expurgate; to exculpate, vindicate, justify, excusefebruōto purify, expiatemundōto clean or cleanseēmundōto clean or cleanse thoroughlyēluōto wash out or away; to rinse; to eluteabluōto wash off, wash away, cleanse, purify; to remove darknesstergeōto rub, wipe, wipe off, clean, cleanse; to polish, burnish; to tickle, whetdētergeōto wipe off, wipe away, clean by wiping; to chase away, drive away, remove; to strip off, break off
The English word purify itself goes back to Latin pūrus, through pūrificō.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
purify
purgare, repurgare, expurgare, purum facere (general terms: ☞ purificare not to be recommended): februare (by a sacrifice; a religious word): mundum facere, mundare, emundare (purge from dirt; mundare, emundare, post-Augustan): eluere (wash or rinse out): abluere (by washing off): tergere, detergere (wipe off, sweep): extergere (wipe out): verrere, everrere (sweep, sweep out): lustrare (consecrate by a purifying sacrifice): expiare (expiate). To purify the sewers, cloacas purgare, detergere; the stables, stabula, bubilia purgare or emundare; the body from filth, abluere corpus illuvie: to purify the language, expurgare sermonem; sermonem usitatum emendare; consuetudinem vitiosam et corruptam pura et incorrupta consuetudine emendare: to purify the forum from the marks of crime, expiare forum a sceleris vestigiis.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for purify?
- The usual Latin words for “purify” are pūrgō, repūrgō, expūrgō; also februō, mundō, ēmundō. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.