late Old English clænsunge "a cleansing, a purifying, castigation; chastity, purity," verbal noun from the root of cleanse. As a present-participle adjective, attested from c. 1300.
Entries linking to cleansing
cleanse v.
Old English clænsian "to make clean; purge, purify, chasten; justify," from West Germanic *klainson, from *klainoz (see clean (adj.)). Despite its modern spelling (16c.), it retains its Middle English pronunciation. Related: Cleansed; cleansing.