pure

pure
pure S3 W3 /pjʊə $ pjʊr/ adjective1.  NOT MIXED  [usually before noun] a pure substance or material is not mixed with anything
   OPP  impure
    pure silk/cotton/wool etc
    pure wool blankets
    rings made of pure gold
    Our beef patties are 100% pure.
2.  COMPLETE  [only before noun] complete and total
   SYN  sheer:
    a work of pure genius
    a smile of pure joy
    My mother’s life was pure hell.
    pure chance/luck/coincidence etc
    By pure chance, I met Sir Malcolm that morning.
    The chairman dismissed the report as pure speculation.
3.  CLEAN clean and not containing anything harmful
   OPP  impure:
    We had trouble finding a pure water supply.
    Up here the air was purer.
4. pure and simple used to emphasize that there is only one thing involved or worth considering:
    He wanted revenge, pure and simple.
5.  MORALLY GOOD literary without any sexual experience or evil thoughts
   OPP  impure:
    a pure young girl
    They’re too pure and innocent to know what’s really going on.
6.  COLOUR OR SOUND very clear and beautiful:
    a cloudless sky of the purest blue
    Her voice, clear and pure, soared up to the roof.
7.  TYPICAL  [only before noun] typical of a particular style:
    His music is pure New York.
8.  BREED/RACE bred from only one group or race:
    My husband is pure Japanese and traces his family back 800 years.
    The Highland is the oldest and purest breed of cattle in Britain.
9.  ART OR STUDY  [usually before noun] done according to an accepted standard or pattern:
    Gothic architecture in its purest form
10. pure science/maths etc work in science etc that increases our knowledge of the subject rather than using it for practical purposes
11. be as pure as the driven snow to be morally perfect – used humorously to say someone is not like this at all
⇨ purely
     

COLLOCATIONS

(for Meaning 2)

■ nouns
   ▪ pure chance/luck He had discovered the truth by pure chance.
   ▪ pure coincidence It was pure coincidence that I arrived on the same plane.
   ▪ pure joy/pleasure/delight Lucinda flashed him a smile of pure joy.
   ▪ pure hatred She remembered the look of pure hatred in his eyes.
   ▪ pure speculation (=a guess that is not based on any facts) Most of what you hear is pure speculation.
   ▪ pure fantasy/fiction (=something that is not true at all) He dismissed the allegations as ‘pure fantasy’.
   ▪ pure genius That excuse you came up with was a flash of pure genius.
   ▪ pure hell He has described this period as ‘pure hell’.