Clean and cleanse

Yesterday it occured to me that the difference between "clean" and "cleanse" evaded me.

1. First of all the pronunciation: clean \?kl?n\ & cleanse \?klenz\.

2. Usage

The verbs clean and cleanse both mean to make (something or someone) clean but cleanse usually refers to making the body or part of the body clean.

• cleansing the skin
• The herb is believed to cleanse the body of toxins.
• The cut should be cleansed gently with mild soap and water.

It can also refer to making a person's mind, soul, reputation, etc., clean.

• The ceremony is meant to cleanse people of their guilt and sin.
• Try to cleanse your mind through meditation.
• The believer is exhorted chiefly to abstain from evil and seek to cleanse himself from feelings of covetousness, and impurity, and revenge.

Collocations & Idioms

• Ethnic cleansing,
• http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/cleansing

Synonyms: purify, purge, sanctify.

Antonyms: besmirch,dirty, foul.

Clean is more common than cleanse and its use is less specific.

3. Word formation

Cleanse is used only as a verb.

Clean as a noun is an act of removing dirt from something.

As a verb it means:

- to make (something) clean : to remove dirt, marks, etc., from (something),

- to become clean,

- to make (something, such as a room) neat and orderly.

As an adverb:

- all the way : completely or entirely <play the game clean>, <the bullet went clean through his arm>

As an adjective:

- free from dirt, marks, etc. : not dirty

- tending to keep clean

- free from pollution or other dangerous substances

1

a : free from dirt or pollution <changed to clean clothes> <clean solar energy> b : free from contamination or disease <a clean wound>c : free or relatively free from radioactivity <a clean atomic explosion>

2

a : unadulterated, pure <the clean thrill of one's first flight>b of a precious stone : having no interior flaws visiblec : free from growth that hinders tillage <clean farmland>

3

a : free from moral corruption or sinister connections of any kind <a candidate with a cleanrecord>; also : free from violations <a clean driving record>b : free from offensive treatment of sexual subjects and from the use of obscenity <a clean joke>c : observing the rules : fair <a clean fight>

4

: ceremonially or spiritually pure <and all who are clean may eat flesh — Leviticus 7:19(Revised Standard Version)>

5

a : thorough, complete <a clean break with the past>b : deftly executed : skillful <clean ballet technique>c : hit beyond the reach of an opponent <a clean single to center>

6

a : relatively free from error or blemish : clear; specifically : legible <clean copy>b : unencumbered <clean bill of sale>

7

a : characterized by clarity and precision : trim <a clean prose style> <architecture with cleanalmost austere lines>b : even, smooth <a clean edge> <a sharp blow causing a clean break>c : free from impedances to smooth flow (as of water or air) <a clean airplane> <a ship with aclean bottom>

8

a : empty <the ship returned with a clean hold>b : free from drug addiction <has been clean for six months>c slang : having no contraband (as weapons or drugs) in one's possession

Used links:

http://www.merriam-webster.com/

http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/

http://sentence.yourdictionary.com/