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   wash

   /wɒʃ/

   verb

   • 1. clean with water and, typically, soap or detergent: "Auntie Lou had washed all their clothes" Similar cleancleansespongescrubwipescourliterary:lavecleancleansespongescrubmophose downsqueegeesluice (down)swill (down)douseswab (down)flushdisinfectlaundercleanrinse (out)dry-cleanliterary:laveshampoolathercleanOpposite dirtysoildirtysoil
   • ▪ clean oneself with soap and water: "he reached for the soap and began to wash" Similar clean oneselfhave a washwash oneselfbathebathshowerhave a bath/showertake a bath/showersoakdouchefreshen upwash upformal, humorous:perform one's ablutionsdated:make one's toilet
   • ▪ (with reference to a stain or dirt) remove or be removed by cleaning with water and detergent: "they have to keep washing the mould off the walls" Similar remove by washingsponge offscrub offwipe offrinse offremoveflush out/awayexpungeeradicate
   • ▪ (of fabric, a garment, or dye) withstand cleaning to a specified degree without shrinking or fading: "a linen-mix yarn which washes well"
   • ▪ do one's laundry: "I need someone to cook and wash for me"
   • ▪ wet or moisten (something) thoroughly: literary "you are beautiful with your face washed with rain"
   • 2. (of flowing water) carry (someone or something) in a particular direction: "floods washed away the bridges" Similar sweepcarryconveytransportmovedeliverdepositdrive
   • ▪ be carried by flowing water: "an oil slick washed up on the beaches" Similar sweepcarryconveytransportmovedeliverdepositdrive
   • ▪ (especially of waves) sweep or splash in a particular direction: "the sea began to wash along the decks" Similar splashlapsploshdashbreakbeatstrikesweepmovesurgeripplerollflowliterary:plashlave
   • ▪ (of a river, sea, or lake) flow through or lap against (a country, coast, etc.): "offshore islands washed by warm blue seas"
   • ▪ sift metallic particles from (earth or gravel) by running water through it: "the sand has been churned and washed by miners"
   • 3. brush with a thin coat of dilute paint or ink: "the walls were washed with shades of umber" Similar paintcolourapply paint totinthighlightshadedyestaindistempercoatcover
   • ▪ coat inferior metal with (a film of gold or silver from a solution): "copper washed with silver" Similar platecovercoatoverlaylaminateveneerglazegildsilver
   • 4. seem convincing or genuine: informal "charm won't wash with this crew" Similar be acceptedbe acceptablebe plausiblebe convincinghold uphold waterstand upbear scrutinystand the test of timebe believable/crediblepass musterprove truemake senseinformal:stick

   noun

   • 1. an act of washing something or an instance of being washed: "her hair needs a wash" Similar cleancleaningcleansingshowerdouchedipbathsoakformal, humorous:ablutionsrare:lavation
   • ▪ a quantity of clothes needing to be or just having been washed: "she hung out her Tuesday wash" Similar laundrywashingdirty washingdirty clothessoiled linendated:bagwash
   • 2. the water or air disturbed by a moving boat or aircraft: "the wash of a motorboat" Similar backwashbackflowwaketrailtrainpathchurningdisturbance
   • ▪ the breaking of waves on a shore: "the wash of waves on the pebbled beach" Similar surgeflowswellwellingsweepundulationrise and fallebb and flowrollsplash
   • 3. an inlet of the North Sea on the east coast of England between Norfolk and Lincolnshire.
   • 4. a medicinal or cleansing solution: "citrus-scented body wash" Similar lotionsalveapplicationpreparationrinseliquidlinimentembrocationemulsion
   • 5. a layer of paint or metal spread thinly on a surface: "the walls were covered with a pale lemon wash" Similar paintstainvarnishcoatlayerfilmoverlay
   • 6. silt or gravel carried by a stream or river and deposited as sediment.
   • ▪ a sandbank exposed only at low tide.
   • 7. kitchen slops and other food waste fed to pigs.
   • 8. malt fermenting in preparation for distillation.
   • 9. a situation or result that is of no benefit to either of two opposing sides: informal North American "the plan's impact on jobs would be a wash, creating as many as it costs"

   Word Origin Old Englishwæscan (verb), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch wassen, German waschen, also to water.

   Scrabble Points: 10

   • W

     4

   • A

     1

   • S

     1

   • H

     4

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