Filtered

Part of speech: adjective, verb

Definitions

1. To pass a substance or signal through a device or process that removes unwanted components ; to selectively screen or exclude certain elements from a group or data set ; to modify or condition something by allowing only certain parts to pass through
2. The act of passing materials like liquids, air, or information through a medium that removes impurities or unwanted parts ; the process of sifting through information or items to remove undesired entries ; a technique to refine or purify a substance by separating selected contents from the rest
3. The process in which unwanted materials are separated physically or digitally by passing them through a medium designed to catch contaminants ; the selective exclusion of specific items or data based on criteria ; a method used to cleanse or alter substances by allowing only desired components to proceed

Etymology: "Filtered" is simply the past tense and past participle of the verb "filter", so its history is that of the verb it comes from. The base word "filter" is formed from a Medieval Latin source, and the ending "-ed" that turns it into a past form descends from an Old English suffix, which in turn traces back to ancient Germanic endings and, further still, to Proto-Indo-European forms. The "-ed" ending is one of the oldest working parts of English grammar. Its earliest forms in Old English were "-ed" and "-od", used to mark completed actions, and the same suffix still does this job on verbs like "filter", where "filter" plus "-ed" yields "filtered" and signals that the straining is already finished. The adjective sense, describing something already purified by passing through a filter, grows directly out of that completed action.

Synonyms: cleansed, purified, refined, strained, clarified

Antonyms: contaminated, polluted, dirty, unclean, tainted