sift — to put flour, sugar, etc. through a sieve to remove lumps or large pieces
Part of speech: VERB
Definition: to put flour, sugar, etc. through a sieve to remove lumps or large pieces
Pronunciation (IPA): /sɪft/
Example Sentences
- My grandmother always sifts flour three times because she believes it makes the cake fluffier than a cloud.
- The detective spent hours sifting through the suspect's social media posts.
- After the birthday party, we had to sift through hundreds of photos to find the perfect one for Instagram.
sift
VERB[/sɪft/]
to put flour, sugar, etc. through a sieve to remove lumps or large pieces
to put flour, sugar, etc. through a sieve to remove lumps or large pieces
Sift the flour to make a gift that will lift!
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🎤Pronunciation
🌳Etymology
Origin
Derived from Old English siftan, meaning 'to strain or pass through a sieve'. The word originally referred to the physical action of separating fine particles from coarser material, and later developed the figurative sense of 'to examine closely' or 'to sort through information carefully'.
Breakdown
The word comes from Old English siftan (to sieve), which is related to the noun sieve. The modern form sift represents a simplified evolution of the Old English verb, with the original -an infinitive suffix dropped in Middle English.
🎵Rhyme
🔗Collocations
📝Examples
“My grandmother always sifts flour three times because she believes it makes the cake fluffier than a cloud.”
“The detective spent hours sifting through the suspect's social media posts.”
“After the birthday party, we had to sift through hundreds of photos to find the perfect one for Instagram.”
“Researchers are sifting through the ancient manuscripts to discover new historical facts.”
📚Related Words
Synonyms
Antonyms
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