distillation

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. The evaporation and subsequent collection of a liquid by condensation as a means of purification: the distillation of water.
2. n. The extraction of the volatile components of a mixture by the condensation and collection of the vapors that are produced as the mixture is heated: petroleum distillation.
3. n. A distillate.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. The act of distilling, or of falling in drops; a producing or shedding in drops.
2. n. The volatilization and subsequent condensation of a liquid by means of an alembic, a still and refrigeratory, or a retort and receiver; the operation of obtaining the spirit, essence, or essential oil of a substance by the evaporation and condensation of the liquid in which it has been macerated; rectification; in the widest sense, the whole process of extracting the essential principle of a substance. The most common method of conducting the process of distillation consists in placing the liquid to be distilled in a boiler of copper or other suitable material, called the still, having a movable head from which proceeds a coiled tube called the worm, which passes through water constantly kept cold. Heat being applied to the still, the liquid in it is volatilized, and rises in vapor into the head of the still, whence, passing down the curved tube or worm, it becomes condensed by the cold water, and makes its exit in a liquid state. The object of distillation is to separate volatile liquids from non-volatile liquids and solid matters, and also, by the operation called fractional distillation (which see, below), to separate from each other volatile liquids which have different boiling-points. The process is used in the arts, in the manufacture of alcohol and spirituous liquors, for preparing essences and essential oils, and for a great variety of other purposes.
3. n. The substance extracted by distilling.
4. n. That which falls in drops, as in nasal catarrh.

Wiktionary

1. n. The act of falling in drops, or the act of pouring out in drops.
2. n. That which falls in drops.
3. n. chemistry The separation of the volatile parts of a substance from the more fixed; specifically, the operation of driving off gas or vapor from volatile liquids or solids, by heat in a retort or still, and the condensation of the products as far as possible by a cool receiver, alembic, or condenser; rectification; vaporization; condensation; as, the distillation of illuminating gas and coal, of alcohol from sour mash, or of boric acid in steam.
4. n. The substance extracted by distilling.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. The act of falling in drops, or the act of pouring out in drops.
2. n. rare That which falls in drops.
3. n. (Chem.) The separation of the volatile parts of a substance from the more fixed; specifically, the operation of driving off gas or vapor from volatile liquids or solids, by heat in a retort or still, and the condensation of the products as far as possible by a cool receiver, alembic, or condenser; rectification; vaporization; condensation.
4. n. The substance extracted by distilling.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. the process of purifying a liquid by boiling it and condensing its vapors
2. n. a purified liquid produced by condensation from a vapor during distilling; the product of distilling