sift out
B2 neutral separable transitive
In simple words
To find and remove (or keep) the right things from a big messy pile by going through it carefully.
Literal meaning: To pass something through a sifter to remove coarser particles — as with sifting flour in baking.
Meanings
1 B1 neutral
To remove unwanted particles or material by passing through a sieve or sifter.
"Sift out the stones before planting the seeds in the soil."
Grammar: separable
2 B2
idiomatic
neutral
To identify and extract specific information or items from a large quantity through careful examination.
"Investigators spent weeks sifting out the relevant emails from thousands of records."
Grammar: separable
Usage notes
Used both literally (cooking, geology) and figuratively (information, candidates, data). The figurative use is common in professional and journalistic contexts. Common in both British and American English.
Commonly used with
information clues candidates facts errors lumps
Forms
Base
sift out
I/you/we/they
3rd person
sifts out
he/she/it
Past simple
sifted out
yesterday
Past participle
sifted out
have + pp
-ing form
sifting out
continuous
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