to produce (a liquid) in purified form by heating it till it evaporates as steam, and cooling it till it again becomes liquid

to make (whisky or other spirits) by this method

to extract the essence of (a plant, etc) by heating it with a solvent

to produce (an oil, etc) by this means

(+ out/off) to obtain, or separate (a volatile ingredient) by heating

to derive (ideas, a written work, etc) from a body of previously amassed material

to extract the essential matter from (previously amassed material)

It's time you distilled all those random jottings into a book

to undergo distillation

to condense or drop from a still after distillation

to exude in drops or in a fine mist

to appear slowly or in small quantities at a time