DISTILL Synonyms: 60 Similar and Opposite Words

distill

verb

di-ˈstil

variants also distil

Definition of distill

as in to drip

to fall or let fall in or as if in drops the basement walls distill water every time it rains heavily

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to filter

to remove usually visible impurities from distill the water before pouring it in the steam iron

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of distill Government attorneys counter that Congress properly restricted where spirits can be distilled to prevent producers from evading federal excise taxes. — Michael Kunzelman, Fortune, 19 Oct. 2026 Pittol is an ice cream wizard, capable of distilling the essence of nearly any flavor into frozen dessert form. — Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026 But Williams, with her trademark video diaries, has distilled a vision of contemporary New York to its purest essence. — Dan Adler, Vanity Fair, 13 Oct. 2026 ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity and other frontier models distill information about a company from their own content as well as news coverage, analyst reports, review sites and communities such as Reddit. — Lora Kratchounova, Forbes.com, 13 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for distill

Recent Examples of Synonyms for distill

Verb

She’s surrounded by a herd of horses and dripping in confidence.

— Robert Lang, Deadline, 19 Oct. 2026
At the denouement, Kember is completely alone, his flat, narcotized baritone dripping onto the faded guitar notes like melted mercury.

— Gabriel Szatan, Pitchfork, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of drip

Verb

Beirut's private-press scene has little in common with the studio culture of ’80s Tokyo, where an abundance of resources and technology filtered the same foreign influences into something more perfect and polished.

— Shy Clara Thompson, Pitchfork, 23 Oct. 2026
Inside Clarify Clinic’s proprietary centrifuge machine, which is designed to filter contaminants out of human blood.

— Tracy Achonwa, Vogue, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of filter

Verb

Its stainless steel body can last for years of making pour-over coffee every morning or evening cups of hot tea, and the kettle also comes in handy to boil water fast for everyday recipes.

— Caley Sturgill, Southern Living, 21 Oct. 2026
Following the news of the deputy's death, condolences from law enforcement agencies and city leaders began pouring in on Wednesday.

— Briauna Brown, CBS News, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of pour

Verb

Supreme Court Justice Zanin later clarified the decision is valid for wherever polls were still open.

— ABC News, ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026
Test results should help clarify whether its propulsion system and modular design can deliver the range and flexibility L3Harris promises.

— Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of clarify

Verb

From there, wine flowed as attendees tucked into filet mignon and sea bass while chatting across large burgundy floral centerpieces.

— Emily Tannenbaum, Vogue, 24 Oct. 2026
Some of the weapons from American manufacturers purchased during the Biden administration are still flowing to Ukraine, but many of those contracts have been fulfilled.

— Lauren Kent, CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of flow

Verb

Future research will focus on refining decoupling molecules, integrating tandem cell designs, and scaling production for roll-to-roll manufacturing.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 26 Oct. 2026
Those productions give Galleri5 a base for refining its technology against real-world creative and production demands.

— Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 25 Oct. 2026

Definition of refine

Verb

Key Takeaways These artificial channels are up to five times more selective for lithium, offering a simpler way to extract the critical battery material.

— Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 28 Oct. 2026
In lieu of sweet tea, a commercial sugar cane juicer extracts yellow-green juice.

— Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of extract

Verb

At London’s Clarify Clinics, founder Yael Cohen has developed the controversial Clari Procedure, a patented two-hour IV treatment that claims to purify the blood plasma.

— Tracy Achonwa, Vogue, 23 Oct. 2026
BioFiltro, a company founded in Chile, puts red wigglers in a bed of chips to purify wastewater from dairy stalls.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of purify

Browse Nearby Words

distensions

distill

distilled

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Distill.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distill. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of distill

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

grotesque

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes