1
as in to purge
to free from moral guilt or blemish especially ceremonially
received the sacrament of penance, whereby they were sanctified and restored to divine grace
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to bless
to make holy through prayers or ritual
sanctify the bread for Communion
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Recent Examples of sanctify
For King, defending a people did not mean sanctifying a state.
—
Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 15 Feb. 2026
But months later, the campaign to sanctify Kirk appears to have backfired in some ways.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 20 Jan. 2026
An overexposed photo shows Miralba from the torso up, looking into a white sky, with a ray of light almost sanctifying her face.
—Camila Osorio, New Yorker, 17 Jan. 2026
These are the kinds of faces O’Rourke foregrounds, similarly centering the quotidian to sanctifying effect.
—Catherine Bray, Variety, 17 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sanctify
Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 15 Feb. 2026
But months later, the campaign to sanctify Kirk appears to have backfired in some ways.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 20 Jan. 2026
An overexposed photo shows Miralba from the torso up, looking into a white sky, with a ray of light almost sanctifying her face.
—Camila Osorio, New Yorker, 17 Jan. 2026
These are the kinds of faces O’Rourke foregrounds, similarly centering the quotidian to sanctifying effect.
—Catherine Bray, Variety, 17 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sanctify
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sanctify
Verb
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Of the 44 officers selected to join the Communist Party’s top-leadership council, 40 have been purged or gone missing since mid-2023, Neil Thomas, a fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute’s Center for China Analysis, told me.—
Michael Schuman,
The Atlantic,
1 Apr. 2026
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Trump has since purged both commissions of critics and appointed loyalists to take their places.—
Dave Goldiner,
New York Daily News,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Because this energy is centered in Scorpio and Cancer, we’re blessed with the depth of soul needed to accept the true needs of others and ourselves.—
Tarot.com,
Baltimore Sun,
4 Apr. 2026
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Romance and social outings are blessed.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
4 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Once purified, the atmospheric sample enters an enrichment stage that significantly enhances the detectability of trace gases.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
30 Mar. 2026
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Without needing batteries or wires, the Moso Natural air-purifying bag attracts particles out of the air like a magnet, and continuously works to remove odors and harmful pollutants from your home, filled with just one powerful ingredient -- moso bamboo charcoal.—
Tory Johnson,
ABC News,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Many Pentecostals, for example, fast for a period in January to consecrate the year ahead.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Feb. 2026
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Even if all these sunny promises are enshrined in contracts, built into budgets, and consecrated with good intentions, there are still plenty of ways the whole project could go kerflooey.—
Justin Davidson,
Curbed,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sanctify.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sanctify. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
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