Filtered
/ˈfɪltərd/
Definitions
3 meaningsTo pass (a liquid, gas, light, or sound) through a device to remove unwanted material or components.
/ˈfɪltər/
To remove impurities or unwanted elements from a substance.
The water was filtered to remove any contaminants.
💡 Simply: Imagine you're making coffee, and you want to get rid of the grounds. You use a filter to catch them, right? Well, 'filtered' is what you call something after you've cleaned it up this way – like water that's had all the dirt taken out, or a photo where you've smoothed out all the wrinkles.
👶 For kids: When you filter something, it's like when you use a strainer to take out the yucky bits from juice or soup.
More Examples
I filtered my search results to show only the most relevant articles.
He filtered the data to focus on specific trends.
How It's Used
"Scientists filtered the solution to remove the precipitate."
"The program filtered spam emails from the inbox."
To selectively exclude or include something; to screen out or limit.
/ˈfɪltər/
To selectively process or choose information.
The website allows users to filter search results by price.
💡 Simply: Think of when you decide who to follow on social media. You're 'filtering' the information that you see. You're choosing to see posts from some people and not others. It's like deciding what to watch on TV, and blocking the channels you don't want.
👶 For kids: If you only want to see pictures of kittens, you can filter your search on the computer!
More Examples
She filtered out the irrelevant details from the report.
He filtered the information based on his preferences.
How It's Used
"She filtered her newsfeed to see posts only from her close friends."
"The analyst filtered the dataset to find specific customer behaviors."
Having been passed through a filter; purified or separated.
/ˈfɪltərd/
Having been passed through a filter.
The filtered air was easier to breathe.
💡 Simply: It's like when you have water that has been through a cleaning process, like a special sponge. When something is 'filtered,' it means it's been cleaned up this way. Think of clean water, or maybe a photo with a nice 'filter' on it.
👶 For kids: Water that has had all the yucky stuff taken out is filtered.
More Examples
The image showed a filtered view of the city.
The filtered water tasted clean and refreshing.
How It's Used
"The filtered water was safe to drink."
"She used a filtered lens to reduce glare."
Synonyms & Antonyms
Antonyms
From Old French *filer* ("to strain, filter"), ultimately from Latin *fīlum* ("thread"), referring to the strands used in a filter.
Historically, the term 'filter' and its derivatives have been used in contexts related to purification, separation, and analysis since the 17th century.
Memory tip
Think of a coffee filter – it removes the coffee grounds, leaving the drink.
Word Origin
"thread, strand"