sifting

USAGE SUMMARY

The part of the phrase "sifting" is correct and usable in written English. You can use it when referring to the process of separating or sorting through items, often to find something specific or to remove unwanted elements. Example: "She was sifting through the documents to find the missing report." Alternative expressions include "filtering" and "sorting."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Science

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

59 human-written examples

Specialist officers will then begin sifting through the soil, looking for any remains.

The Guardian

Over at Stubby's House of Christmas (stubbyschristmas.com) the focus is more modern, with the North Carolina-based blogger sifting through this year's crop of festive releases.

The Guardian - Music

"Strangers were deliberately picking through this, sifting for things they could get away with publishing," Sherborne said.

The Guardian

Sifting information from misinformation is a mug's game when both sides in a negotiation are engaged in brinkmanship.

The Guardian - Business

The National Sleep Foundation in the US has had 18 experts sifting through 320 research articles to deliver an updated version of its "sleep time duration recommendations".

The Guardian - Lifestyle

The desperate search for motives, sifting hopelessly through his rap lyrics for clues, is indicative of how misplaced this approach is.

The Guardian - Opinion

You'll gain practical experience of sifting data sets for infographic gold, find out how to spot and assemble stories, and learn the golden rules of data collection when commissioning research of your own.

The Guardian

Record collecting had been a subculture, too, and, for that vanishing breed, finding albums proved to be an exhilarating challenge, one that involved scouring garage sales, sifting through bargain bins.

The Guardian - Books

It seemed to offer ordinary people a chance to get rich quick: one man, sifting through the dirt at the bottom of a stream, might conceivably find enough gold to retire on.

The Economist

The book derives some authority from the authors' original research and benefits from the hours they spent sifting through the attics of descendants of other expedition members for personal diaries and photographs that were never part of the official record.

The Economist

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

1 human-written examples

Single Source's software logs all the information that is exchanged by engineers and managers in some of the big engineering projects that CERN runs, analyses it both by type of information involved and by the identities of sender and receiver, and then sifts key features out of the result.The main sifting technique employed is called a self-organising map.

The Economist

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When using "sifting" metaphorically, ensure the context clearly indicates what is being separated or distinguished, whether it's information, ideas, or evidence.

Common error

Be mindful not to use "sifting" alongside verbs that already imply separation or analysis, as this can create redundancy. For example, avoid saying "sifting and analyzing", as "sifting" often implies analysis itself.

Linguistic Context

The term "sifting" functions primarily as a verb, often in its present participle form ("sifting"). It describes the action of carefully examining or separating something. Ludwig examples show usage in both literal and figurative contexts, in line with Ludwig's AI response.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

78%

Science

15%

Formal & Business

7%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

0%

Wiki

0%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

The term "sifting" is a versatile verb, primarily used to describe the act of carefully examining or separating something, both literally and figuratively. As Ludwig AI confirms, "sifting" is grammatically correct and widely applicable. Its frequent presence in News & Media and Science contexts underscores its utility in conveying deliberate examination and separation. While alternatives like "sorting through" or "filtering" exist, "sifting" maintains a unique nuance of careful discernment. Remember to avoid redundancy by not pairing it with verbs of similar meaning.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

sieving

This term is a direct synonym, suggesting separation by passing through a mesh.

sorting through

Implies a more general categorization process, not necessarily involving the removal of unwanted elements.

filtering

Suggests removing unwanted elements from a liquid or gas, or metaphorically from information.

analyzing

Focuses on understanding the components or nature of something through detailed examination.

examining

Emphasizes a careful and detailed inspection of something.

investigating

Implies a systematic or formal inquiry to discover and examine the facts of an incident, allegation, etc. so as to establish the truth.

reviewing

Suggests a formal assessment or re-examination of something.

assessing

Focuses on evaluating the value or quality of something.

winnowing

Implies separating the valuable from the worthless, often used metaphorically.

separating

Focuses on distinguishing or dividing elements into different categories.

FAQs

How can I use "sifting" in a sentence?

You can use "sifting" to describe the process of separating desirable elements from unwanted ones, or metaphorically to mean carefully examining something. For example, "She was "sifting through" the evidence to find the truth."

What can I say instead of "sifting"?

You can use alternatives like "sorting through", "filtering", or "analyzing" depending on the context.

Which is correct, "sifting through" or "sifting in"?

"Sifting through" is generally the correct phrasing when you want to express an action of carefully examining a collection of items. The expression "sifting in" is rarely used and may sound awkward.

What's the difference between "sifting" and "sieving"?

While both terms imply separating, "sieving" typically refers to the physical process of using a sieve, while "sifting" can be used both physically and metaphorically to mean examining something closely.