# wash

Pronunciation: US say "WAHSH" /wɑʃ/; UK say "WOSH" /wɒʃ/

## Verb

1. To clean someone or something, including oneself, with water and usually soap.
   - Simple: To make something, someone, or yourself clean using water and often soap.
   - _Volunteers wash the rescued dogs before they go up for adoption._
   - _He washed the car in the driveway on Sunday morning._
3. (Of moving water) to carry something away, along, or ashore, or to wear it down; (of a thing) to be carried off or worn away by moving water.
   - Simple: (Of water) to carry something away or onto land, or wear it down. Also, to be carried off by water.
   - _Storm surges wash sand from the dunes every winter._
   - _The swollen river washed entire trees toward the sea._
5. To withstand washing without being damaged; to be suitable for cleaning with water.
   - Simple: To stand up to being washed without getting damaged.
   - _Good cotton sheets wash easily and last for years._
   - _The label warns that the dress will not wash without losing its shape._
6. (Of water or waves) to flow over or against something, wetting it, often with a lapping or splashing sound.
   - Simple: (Of water or waves) to flow over or against something, often with a soft splashing sound.
   - _At high tide, the waves wash the lower steps of the pier._
   - _Her cheeks were washed with tears as she read the old letter._
11. To tint a surface faintly by laying on a thin, diluted coat of paint or color.
   - Simple: To put a thin, watery coat of color over something.
   - _Beginners learn to wash a background evenly before adding detail._
   - _He washed the drawing with a faint gray tone._
12. To be convincing enough to hold up when challenged or examined.
   - Simple: To seem true or believable and to hold up when people question it.
   - _Their claim that the delay was unavoidable just doesn't wash._
   - _The argument failed to wash with anyone who knew the facts._
15. To use flowing water to separate valuable material, such as gold, from the worthless material around it.
   - Simple: To separate valuable bits, such as gold, from useless material using flowing water.
   - _Prospectors wash river gravel to recover specks of gold._
   - _The crew washed the ore to draw out the heavier metal._
16. To cover an object with a thin coat of metal.
   - Simple: To cover something with a thin layer of metal.
   - _The brass fittings on the old clock were washed with gold so they would gleam._
   - _Some jewelers wash sterling silver earrings with rose gold for a warmer color._

## Noun

2. The act or process of cleaning something, or being cleaned, with water or another liquid.
   - Simple: The act of cleaning something with water.
   - _After the long hike, her boots were ready for a thorough wash._
   - _After the long dusty drive, the car badly needed a good wash._
8. The quantity of clothes cleaned together in a single load.
   - Simple: The amount of clothes you clean at one time.
   - _She hung the wash out to dry in the afternoon sun._
   - _He sorted a dark wash from the whites before starting the machine._
4. A liquid used for cleaning or rinsing, especially a lotion or solution applied to the skin or body for hygienic or medicinal purposes.
   - Simple: A liquid used for cleaning or rinsing something, including liquids for the skin, mouth, or a wound.
   - _The mechanic kept a degreasing wash on the bench for oily parts._
   - _The vet sent us home with a medicated wash for the dog's itchy skin._
7. A thin, often translucent layer of diluted paint, ink, or color brushed over a surface, or a thin coating of metal.
   - Simple: A thin, watery layer of paint or color spread over a surface, or a very thin coat of metal.
   - _She laid a delicate wash of color over the entire watercolor._
   - _The background was built up from several light washes._
9. A situation in which gains and losses balance exactly, leaving no overall change.
   - Simple: A result where the good and bad parts cancel each other out, with no real change.
   - _The extra sales were offset by higher shipping costs, so the quarter was a wash._
   - _Politically, the reform was a wash: it pleased one group and angered another in equal measure._
10. In arid and semi-arid regions, the usually dry bed of a stream that flows only intermittently; an arroyo or wadi.
   - Simple: A dry stream bed in a hot, dry region that fills with water only after rain.
   - _The trail dropped into a sandy wash lined with mesquite._
   - _Flash floods can turn a quiet desert wash into a torrent within minutes._
13. Waves breaking against a shore, or the shallow water that surges forward up a beach.
   - Simple: The rush of shallow water onto a beach as waves break.
   - _The steady wash against the pebbles lulled them to sleep._
   - _Children chased the wash as it spread thin across the flat sand._
14. The disturbed water left behind a moving boat or ship, or the disturbed air left behind a moving aircraft.
   - Simple: The rough, moving water behind a boat or ship, or the disturbed air behind a plane.
   - _The tugboat's wash set the harbor buoys bobbing._
   - _Swimmers were warned to stay clear of the wash behind passing vessels._

## Other meanings

- (noun) A shallow stretch or body of water.
- (noun) A complete failure; a venture that comes to nothing.
- (noun) In stage or film lighting, a broad, even spread of light, often of one color, over a whole area; also, a light fixture that produces it.
- (verb) To mix up the tiles before a new game so that their arrangement is random; to shuffle.
- (noun) A sham sale of securities between parties of one interest, or by a broker who is both buyer and seller and serves his own gain rather than the client's.
- (noun) The sloped upper surface of a building member or material, shaped to shed water; also, a structure formed to collect and carry water away.
- (noun) In distilling, wort that has been fermented but has not yet had the spirit taken out of it.
- (verb) During steelmaking, to purify liquid iron of its phosphorus with additions of iron oxide, sometimes along with manganese oxide.
- (verb) To clean a gas by bubbling it through or passing it over a liquid that dissolves its impurities.
- (noun) The flat, broad end of an oar that pushes against the water.
- (noun) Soil and sand that flowing water has carried off toward rivers and the ocean.
- (noun) Low land that water floods at times and leaves dry at others, a shallow stretch of a river or inlet, or a marsh.
- (noun) Kitchen scraps and dirty dishwater, often fed to pigs.
- (noun) In the West Indies, a blend of molasses, water, skimmings, and leftover still liquid that is distilled to make rum.
- (noun) A measure of oysters equal to ten bushels.

## Origin

From Middle English wasshen, from Old English wascan, going back through Proto-Germanic *waskaną ("to wash, get wet") to the Proto-Indo-European root *wed- ("wet; water"). It is related to Dutch wassen, German waschen, and Swedish vaska, all meaning "to wash."

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/wash (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).