Etymograph

English

purification

Purification comes from Latin pūrificō ‘to purify (ritually)’, from pūrus ‘clear, limpid’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pewH- ‘to cleanse, purify’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pewH-1‘to cleanse, purify’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pūros1reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpūrus2‘clear, limpid’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpūrificō3‘to purify (ritually)’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpūrificātiō4
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400purificacion4
  7. Englishtodaypurification4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin purus
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin purifico
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Latin purificatio
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English purification

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pewH-Wiktionary, Latin purus‘to cleanse, purify’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pūrosWiktionary, Latin purusreconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpūrusWiktionary, Latin purifico‘clear, limpid’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpūrificōWiktionary, Latin purificatio‘to purify (ritually)’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpūrificātiōWiktionary, English purification
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400purificacionWiktionary, English purification
  7. EnglishtodaypurificationWiktionary, English purification

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *pewH- ‘to cleanse, purify’

deputy, pity, reputation, pious, piety, putative, puro, expiation, 15 more

through Proto-Italic *pūros

impure, puree, impurity, 7 more

through Latin pūrus ‘clear, limpid’

pure, pour, purity, purist, 10 more

Today it means

noun The act or process of purifying; the removal of impurities.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “purification”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin purus, Latin purifico, Latin purificatio. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *pewH- / purification

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