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Added 9 October 2026

cleanse

/klɛnz/ verb

In Latin: abluō, mundo, luo Wiktionary

verb Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about cleanse at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

To free from dirt; to clean, to purify.
To spiritually purify; to free from guilt or sin; to purge.
To remove (something seen as unpleasant) from a person, place, or thing.

noun

An act of cleansing; a purification.
I regularly visit the spa for a massage and a facial cleanse.

Origin

From Middle English clensen, from Old English clǣnsian, from Proto-West Germanic *klainisōn, from Proto-West Germanic *klainī (“clean”). Cognate with West Frisian klinzgje (“to clean, cleanse”), archaic Dutch kleinzen (“to clean, purify”), Middle Low German klênsen, kleinsen, clensen (“to purify”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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