pure

adj

Etymology: 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”)).

1. Free of flaws or imperfections; unsullied.

   “Such was the origin of a friendship as warm and pure as any that ancient or modern history records.”

2. Free of foreign material or pollutants.

   “A guinea is pure gold if it has in it no alloy.”

   “As for the rest, the air here is said to be purer than elsewhere in Ireland; the water of the Nore is beautifully transparent; and the bogless state of the land helps out the rhyme.”

3. Free of immoral behavior or qualities; clean.

   “Laye hondes sodenly on no man nether be part taker of wother mens synnes. Kepe thy silfe pure.”

4. Mere; that and that only.

   “That idea is pure madness!”

5. Done for its own sake instead of serving another branch of science.

   “The [Isaac] Newton that emerges from the [unpublished] manuscripts is far from the popular image of a rational practitioner of cold and pure reason. The architect of modern science was himself not very modern. He was obsessed with alchemy.”

6. Of a single, simple sound or tone; said of some vowels and the unaspirated consonants.
7. Without harmonics or overtones; not harsh or discordant.
8. Having no side effects.

   “a pure method”

9. A lot of.

   “Well when ah's youngah, ah'd just light a candle rahn de dinna table play pure crazy 8s and spades vif my brotha til we lot dozed off...”

adv

Etymology: 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”)).

1. to a great extent or degree; extremely; exceedingly.

   “You’re pure busy.”

   “I just get pure shy with the interview cats.”

noun

1. Alternative form of puer (“dung (e.g. of dogs)”).

   “[…] Dogs'-dung is called ‘Pure’, from its cleansing and purifying properties.”

   “Mary smelled the rancid odor of the tannery on the right side of the road.[…] "What is that, Mary?" Jake asked. "'Tis a bag for collecting pure. That is going to be your job, Jake. You are to collect pure." "Pure? What is pure?" "Pure is another word for dung," Mary answered.”

verb

Etymology: 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”)).

1. To hit (the ball) completely cleanly and accurately.

   “Tiger Woods pured his first drive straight down the middle of the fairway.”

2. To cleanse; to refine.