variants
or less commonly distil
distilled; distilling
1
: to let fall, exude, or precipitate (see precipitate entry 1 sense 3b) in drops or in a wet mist
some caves are dry, others distill water from invisible rifts—
Norman Douglas
Norman Douglas2
a
: to purify or transform (a liquid) by successive evaporation and condensation : to subject to or transform by distillation
distill molasses into rum
b
: to obtain by or as if by distillation
distill whiskey
able to distill humor from personal loss
c
: to extract the essence of : concentrate
distill the experience into a poem
1
a
: to fall or materialize in drops or in a fine moisture
b
: to appear slowly or in small quantities at a time
2
a
: to undergo distillation
b
: to perform distillation
Examples of distill in a Sentence
They distill the whiskey from malted barley.
He has perfectly distilled the meaning of the holiday into a poem.
Recent Examples on the Web
And distill is exactly what the company did the day after Prohibition ended.
—Maggie Menderski, Louisville Courier Journal, 16 Sep. 2025
One tip is to distill a bold insight or provocative stat into a visually punchy 30-second clip that makes people pause, reflect and want to learn more.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Others, particularly around social issues, are harder to distill.
—Rohan Goswami, semafor.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Artisans sort the wood by hand, selecting only the darkest heartwood, and distill it for just three days.
—Adam Hurly, Robb Report, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distill
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Maggie Menderski, Louisville Courier Journal, 16 Sep. 2025
One tip is to distill a bold insight or provocative stat into a visually punchy 30-second clip that makes people pause, reflect and want to learn more.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Others, particularly around social issues, are harder to distill.
—Rohan Goswami, semafor.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Artisans sort the wood by hand, selecting only the darkest heartwood, and distill it for just three days.
—Adam Hurly, Robb Report, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distill
Cite this Entry
“Distill.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/distill. Accessed 22 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
distill
verb
dis·till
variants
also distil
distilled; distilling
: to obtain or purify by distillation
Medical Definition
distill
verb
dis·till
variants
also distil
distilled; distilling
1
: to subject to or transform by distillation
2
: to obtain by or as if by distillation
3
: to obtain an extract from (as a plant) by infusion and distillation
making medicines by distilling herbs
1
: to undergo distillation
2
: to condense or drop from a still after distillation
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