sift

verb
UK: /sɪft/
US: /sɪft/

  1. To put flour, sugar, etc. through a sieve to break up large pieces.

    1. Sift the flour before you use it for baking a cake.
    2. Before adding the dry ingredients, carefully sift them to remove any lumps and ensure a smoother batter.

  2. To examine something very carefully in order to find something important or useful.

    1. The police will sift through the evidence.
    2. Detectives continue to sift through the wreckage, looking for clues that might reveal the cause of the accident.

  3. To separate or remove something unwanted from something else.

    1. The workers sift the sand to remove stones.
    2. The program helps to sift out spam emails from your inbox, preventing clutter.

Synonyms

separate filter screen analyze examine investigate bolt strain
sift noun

  1. A container with a mesh base, used for separating fine particles from coarser ones, or for breaking up lumps.

    1. Use a flour sift to mix the dry ingredients.
    2. She used a sift to separate the fine sand from the pebbles on the beach.
sift transitive-verb

  1. Pass (something) through a sieve to remove unwanted elements or impurities.

    1. Sift through all potential options to find the best choice.
    2. It's important to sift through the available data to get the real results.
sift intransitive-verb

  1. To examine evidence.

    1. The investigators sift through the crime scene carefully.
    2. We sift through evidence to discover who robbed the bank.

Frequently Asked Questions

The word "sift" in English means: To put flour, sugar, etc. through a sieve to break up large pieces., To examine something very carefully in order to find something important or useful., To separate or remove something unwanted from something else..

The phonetic transcription of "sift" is /sɪft/ in British English and /sɪft/ in American English. Click the 🔊 button to hear both pronunciations.

Synonyms for "sift": separate, filter, screen, analyze, examine, investigate, bolt, strain.

Example usage of "sift": "Sift the flour before you use it for baking a cake.". More examples on the page.