WASH

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does wash mean? 

• WASH (noun)
  The noun WASH has 8 senses:

1. a thin coat of water-base paint

2. the work of cleansing (usually with soap and water)

3. the dry bed of an intermittent stream (as at the bottom of a canyon)

4. the erosive process of washing away soil or gravel by water (as from a roadway)

5. the flow of air that is driven backwards by an aircraft propeller

6. a watercolor made by applying a series of monochrome washes one over the other

7. garments or white goods that can be cleaned by laundering

8. any enterprise in which losses and gains cancel out

  Familiarity information: WASH used as a noun is common.

• WASH (verb)
  The verb WASH has 13 senses:

1. clean with some chemical process

2. cleanse (one's body) with soap and water

3. cleanse with a cleaning agent, such as soap, and water

4. move by or as if by water

5. be capable of being washed

6. admit to testing or proof

7. separate dirt or gravel from (precious minerals)

8. apply a thin coating of paint, metal, etc., to

9. remove by the application of water or other liquid and soap or some other cleaning agent

10. form by erosion

11. make moist

12. wash or flow against

13. to cleanse (itself or another animal) by licking

  Familiarity information: WASH used as a verb is familiar.

 Dictionary entry details 

• WASH (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A thin coat of water-base paint

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("wash" is a kind of...):

water-base paint (paint in which water is used as the vehicle)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "wash"):

blackwash (a wash that colors a surface black)

calcimine (a water-base paint containing zinc oxide and glue and coloring; used as a wash for walls and ceilings)

color wash; colour wash (a wash of whitewash or other water-base paint tinted with a colored pigment)

whitewash (wash consisting of lime and size in water; used for whitening walls and other surfaces)

Derivation:

wash (apply a thin coating of paint, metal, etc., to)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The work of cleansing (usually with soap and water)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

lavation; wash; washing

Hypernyms ("wash" is a kind of...):

work (activity directed toward making or doing something)

Meronyms (parts of "wash"):

rinse; rinsing (the removal of soap with clean water in the final stage of washing)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "wash"):

ablution (the ritual washing of a priest's hands or of sacred vessels)

dishwashing; washup (the act of washing dishes)

washing-up (the washing of dishes etc after a meal)

window-washing (the activity of washing windows)

rinse (washing lightly without soap)

soak; soaking (washing something by allowing it to soak)

laundering (washing clothes and bed linens)

bathing; washup (the act of washing yourself (or another person))

Derivation:

wash (cleanse (one's body) with soap and water)

wash (cleanse with a cleaning agent, such as soap, and water)

wash (be capable of being washed)

wash (to cleanse (itself or another animal) by licking)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The dry bed of an intermittent stream (as at the bottom of a canyon)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)

Synonyms:

dry wash; wash

Hypernyms ("wash" is a kind of...):

creek bed; streambed (a channel occupied (or formerly occupied) by a stream)

Domain region:

West; western United States (the region of the United States lying to the west of the Mississippi River)

Sense 4

Meaning:

The erosive process of washing away soil or gravel by water (as from a roadway)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural processes

Synonyms:

wash; washout

Context example:

from the house they watched the washout of their newly seeded lawn by the water

Hypernyms ("wash" is a kind of...):

soil erosion (the washing away of soil by the flow of water)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "wash"):

rain-wash (the washing away of soil or other loose material by rain)

Sense 5

Meaning:

The flow of air that is driven backwards by an aircraft propeller

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural phenomena

Synonyms:

airstream; backwash; race; slipstream; wash

Hypernyms ("wash" is a kind of...):

flow (any uninterrupted stream or discharge)

Sense 6

Meaning:

A watercolor made by applying a series of monochrome washes one over the other

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

wash; wash drawing

Hypernyms ("wash" is a kind of...):

water-color; water-colour; watercolor; watercolour (a painting produced with watercolors)

Sense 7

Meaning:

Garments or white goods that can be cleaned by laundering

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

laundry; wash; washables; washing

Hypernyms ("wash" is a kind of...):

garment (an article of clothing)

household linen; white goods (drygoods for household use that are typically made of white cloth)

Derivation:

wash (clean with some chemical process)

wash (cleanse with a cleaning agent, such as soap, and water)

Sense 8

Meaning:

Any enterprise in which losses and gains cancel out

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Context example:

at the end of the year the accounting department showed that it was a wash

Hypernyms ("wash" is a kind of...):

business activity; commercial activity (activity undertaken as part of a commercial enterprise)

Domain usage:

colloquialism (a colloquial expression; characteristic of spoken or written communication that seeks to imitate informal speech)

• WASH (verb)

Conjugation:

Sense 1

Meaning:

Clean with some chemical process

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Synonyms:

rinse; wash

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

process; serve; swear out (deliver a warrant or summons to someone)

Verb group:

launder; wash (cleanse with a cleaning agent, such as soap, and water)

wash (separate dirt or gravel from (precious minerals))

wash; wash away; wash off; wash out (remove by the application of water or other liquid and soap or some other cleaning agent)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "wash"):

elute (wash out with a solvent, as in chromatography)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sentence example:

They wash the cape

Derivation:

wash (garments or white goods that can be cleaned by laundering)

washable (capable of being washed without injury)

washer (a home appliance for washing clothes and linens automatically)

washer (someone who washes things for a living)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Cleanse (one's body) with soap and water

Classified under:

Verbs of grooming, dressing and bodily care

Synonyms:

lave; wash

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

clean; cleanse (clean one's body or parts thereof, as by washing)

Verb group:

wash (to cleanse (itself or another animal) by licking)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "wash"):

shampoo (use shampoo on (hair))

hush (wash by removing particles)

scrub; scrub up (wash thoroughly)

sponge down (wash with a sponge)

gargle; rinse (rinse one's mouth and throat with mouthwash)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody

Sentence examples:

They wash
They wash themselves

Also:

wash up (wash one's face and hands)

Derivation:

wash; washing (the work of cleansing (usually with soap and water))

Sense 3

Meaning:

Cleanse with a cleaning agent, such as soap, and water

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Synonyms:

launder; wash

Context example:

Wash the towels, please!

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

clean; make clean (make clean by removing dirt, filth, or unwanted substances from)

Verb group:

rinse; wash (clean with some chemical process)

wash (be capable of being washed)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "wash"):

powerwash; pressure-wash (wash before painting to remove old paint and mildew)

acid-wash (wash with acid so as to achieve a bleached look)

machine-wash; machine wash (wash by machine)

hand-wash; handwash (wash or launder by hand instead of with a machine)

stone-wash; stonewash (wash with stones to achieve a worn appearance)

cradle (wash in a cradle)

rinse; rinse off (wash off soap or remaining dirt)

suds (wash in suds)

wash out (wash free from unwanted substances, such as dirt)

water-wash (wash with water)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sentence example:

They wash the cape

Derivation:

wash (the work of cleansing (usually with soap and water))

wash (garments or white goods that can be cleaned by laundering)

washable (capable of being washed without injury)

washer (a home appliance for washing clothes and linens automatically)

washer (someone who washes things for a living)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Move by or as if by water

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Context example:

The swollen river washed away the footbridge

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

displace; move (cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense)

Verb group:

wash (form by erosion)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Sense 5

Meaning:

Be capable of being washed

Classified under:

Verbs of being, having, spatial relations

Context example:

Does this material wash?

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

be (have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun))

Verb group:

launder; wash (cleanse with a cleaning agent, such as soap, and water)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Something ----s Adjective/Noun

Derivation:

wash (the work of cleansing (usually with soap and water))

washable (capable of being washed without injury)

Sense 6

Meaning:

Admit to testing or proof

Classified under:

Verbs of being, having, spatial relations

Context example:

This silly excuse won't wash in traffic court

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

stand (be in effect; be or remain in force)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s

Sense 7

Meaning:

Separate dirt or gravel from (precious minerals)

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

separate (divide into components or constituents)

"Wash" entails doing...:

rinse; rinse off (wash off soap or remaining dirt)

Verb group:

rinse; wash (clean with some chemical process)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "wash"):

pan; pan off; pan out (wash dirt in a pan to separate out the precious minerals)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 8

Meaning:

Apply a thin coating of paint, metal, etc., to

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

cover (provide with a covering or cause to be covered)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "wash"):

whitewash (cover with whitewash)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

wash (a thin coat of water-base paint)

Sense 9

Meaning:

Remove by the application of water or other liquid and soap or some other cleaning agent

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Synonyms:

wash; wash away; wash off; wash out

Context example:

he managed to wash out the stains

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

remove; take; take away; withdraw (remove something concrete, as by lifting, pushing, or taking off, or remove something abstract)

Verb group:

rinse; wash (clean with some chemical process)

wash out (wash free from unwanted substances, such as dirt)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 10

Meaning:

Form by erosion

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Context example:

The river washed a ravine into the mountainside

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

eat away; erode; fret (remove soil or rock)

Verb group:

wash (move by or as if by water)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Sense 11

Meaning:

Make moist

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Synonyms:

dampen; moisten; wash

Context example:

The dew moistened the meadows

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

wet (cause to become wet)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "wash"):

humidify; moisturise; moisturize (make (more) humid)

baste (cover with liquid before cooking)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Sense 12

Meaning:

Wash or flow against

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Synonyms:

lap; lave; wash

Context example:

the waves laved the shore

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

flow (cover or swamp with water)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Sense 13

Meaning:

To cleanse (itself or another animal) by licking

Classified under:

Verbs of grooming, dressing and bodily care

Context example:

The cat washes several times a day

Hypernyms (to "wash" is one way to...):

clean; cleanse (clean one's body or parts thereof, as by washing)

Verb group:

lave; wash (cleanse (one's body) with soap and water)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s

Derivation:

wash (the work of cleansing (usually with soap and water))

 Context examples 

Bronchial washing is used to find infections.

(Bronchial washing, NCI Dictionary)

Aunt Em was washing the dishes.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

These I changed every second day, and washed them myself.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

Then, she immediately ran out of the house to wash her face, in order that she might sit quietly beside him, and be found at work there, when he should awake.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

The result is that there could be a buildup of neuro-inflammation that isn't being washed away.

(Scientists say excess cerebrospinal fluid may serve as early sign of autism, Wikinews)

Every morning she went with the child to the garden where the wild beasts were kept, and washed herself there in a clear stream.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

Putting on a big apron, she fell to work and got the dishes piled up ready for washing, when she discovered that the fire was out.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

When that happens, a significant amount of calcium washes out of the soil, causing calcium deficiency and more water use in plants.

(Previously unknown mechanism causes increased forest water use, National Science Foundation)

Buildings fall as their support washes away.

(NASA Map Reveals a New Landslide Risk Factor, NASA)

What would she think if she learned that he had never washed his teeth in all the days of his life?

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)