Dictionary Definition
sieve n : a strainer for separating lumps from
powdered material or grading particles [syn: screen]
Verb
1 examine in order to test suitability; "screen
these samples"; "screen the job applicants" [syn: screen, screen out,
sort]
2 check and sort carefully; "sift the
information" [syn: sift]
3 separate by passing through a sieve or other
straining device to separate out coarser elements; "sift the flour"
[syn: sift, strain]
4 distinguish and separate out; "sift through the
job candidates" [syn: sift]
User Contributed Dictionary
Noun
- A device to separate larger objects from smaller objects, or to separate solid objects from a liquid.
- A process, physical or abstract, that arrives at a final result
by filtering out unwanted pieces of input from a larger starting
set of input.
- Given a list of consecutive numbers starting at 1, the Sieve of Eratosthenes algorithm will find all of the prime numbers.
Translations
device to separate larger objects
- Albanian: sitë
- Asturian: peñera
- Basque: bahe
- Bosnian: sito , rešeto
- Catalan: sedàs
- Chinese: 篩子, 筛子
- Croatian: sito , rešeto
- Czech: síto
- Dutch: zeef
- Esperanto: kribrilo
- Finnish: seula, siivilä
- French: tamis , passoire
- German: Sieb
- Greek: κόσκινο (kóskino)
- Hebrew: נפה
- Hungarian: szita, rosta
- Ido: sivo
- Italian: setaccio
- Japanese: ふるい (furui)
- Korean: 체 (che)
- Norwegian: sikt , såld , sil
- Romanian: sită
- Russian: сетка (setka)
- Serbian:
- Spanish: tamiz (for solids), colador (for liquids)
- Swedish: såll
- Turkish: süzgeç
process, physical or abstract
- Czech: síto
Translations
to strain, sift or sort using a sieve
- German: sieben, durchsieben
See also
Extensive Definition
In general, a sieve separates wanted/desired
elements from unwanted material using a tool such as a mesh, net or other
filtration or distillation methods, but it is also used for
classification of powders by particle size, or for size measurement
as an analytical technique. The word "sift" derives from this term.
A strainer is a type of sieve typically associated with separating
liquids from solids.
Sieve may mean:
Cooking
- a colander, a (typically) bowl-shaped sieve used as a strainer in cooking
- a chinoise, or conical sieve used as a strainer, also sometimes used like a food mill
- a tamis, also known as a drum sieve
- a zaru, or bamboo sieve, used in Japanese cooking
- a flour sifter, used in baking
- a mesh strainer, or just "strainer," usually consisting of a fine metal mesh screen on a metal frame
- a tea strainer, specifically intended for use when making tea
- a cocktail strainer, a bar accessory
Chemistry
- in transport phenomena, see sieving coefficient
- in the mining industry, a mesh used to separate fine particles from coarse ones
- in particle-size analysis or particle size measurement multiple sieving is a procedure or technique
Mathematics
- in sieve theory, a technique for counting or filtering sets of numbers
- a sieve (category theory), a way of writing down how objects in a category glue to give other one
Computer science
- Sieve (mail filtering language), a proposed standard for specifying mail filters
- Sieve C++ Parallel Programming System, an auto-parallelizing compiler for C++
Cryptography
- Sieve Test This test is used when generating a private key with OpenSSL. But in OpenSSL web site it is not explained why or how it is used. See http://www.openssl.org/docs/apps/genrsa.html
Other uses
- a stainless steel strainer, used in plumbing
- in metaphor and
simile, sieve may often
be used to refer to things that are leaky, as a sieve used for a
bowl.
- In particular, in hockey, a goaltender who lets a lot of goals through is sometimes compared to a sieve. (In college hockey students chant the word "sieve" at the opposite goalie)
- In basketball, a player who is a poor defender is sometimes referred to as a "sieve."
- On rivers, a sieve or strainer is a dangerous obstacle that water can pass through, but people cannot. See Obstacle in whitewater canoing
- the Sieve, a river in Italy
sieve in Catalan: Garbell
sieve in German: Sieb
sieve in French: Passoire
sieve in Japanese: 篩
sieve in Dutch: Zeef
sieve in Polish: sito
sieve in Portuguese: Crivo
sieve in Spanish: Rejilla
sieve in Spanish: Filtro
sieve in Swedish: Såll
Synonyms, Antonyms and Related Words
analyze, analyzer, arabesque, assort, basketry, basketwork, bolt, bolter, breaker, cancellation, categorize, centrifuge, clack, clarifier, clarify, classify, clear, colander, collate, contradistinguish,
cordon, cordon off,
cradle, cribble, cribriformity, cribrosity, cross-hatching,
crossing-out, cull out, cutter, decrassify, demarcate, demark, depurate, differentiate, discriminate, distill, distinguish, divide, draw the line, edulcorate, elute, essentialize, extract, filigree, filter, filtrate, fret, fretwork, ghettoize, gin, gossiper, gradate, grade, grate, grating, grid, gridiron, grille, grillwork, group, hachure, hatching, honeycomb, insulate, interlacement, intertexture, intertwinement, isolate, keep apart, keep aside,
lace, lacery, lacework, lacing, lattice, latticework, lay aside,
leach, lixiviate, lixiviator, mark the
interface, mesh, meshes, meshwork, net, netting, network, percolate, percolator, pick out,
plexure, plexus, porosity, porousness, purifier, purify, put aside, quarantine, quidnunc, raddle, rank, rectify, refine, refiner, refinery, reticle, reticulation, reticule, reticulum, riddle, rocker, rumormonger, scandalmonger, screen, screen out, screening, seclude, segregate, select, separate, separator, set a limit, set
apart, set aside, set off, sever, severalize, sieve out,
sievelikeness,
sift, sift out, sifter, size, sort, sort out, sorter, spiritualize, split hairs,
sponge, strain, strainer, stripper, subdivide, sublimate, sublime, subordinate, subtilize, tabby, talebearer, texture, thrash, thresh, tissue, tracery, trellis, trelliswork, try, wattle, weave, weaving, web, webbing, webwork, weft, wicker, wickerwork, winnow, winnowing basket,
winnowing fan, winnowing machine