wash JUST WRITTEN FOR YOU
/wɒʃ/ · wash
verb
- To clean with water. Dishwashers wash dishes much more efficiently than most humans.
- To move or erode by the force of water in motion. Heavy rains wash a road or an embankment.
- To separate valuable material (such as gold) from worthless material by the action of flowing water. Gold panning involves washing gravel to find gold nuggets.
noun
- The action of the verb to wash. The washing of the car took several hours.
- Clothing, bedlinen or soft furnishings that have been, are currently being, or are to be washed; laundry. My mother used to do the washing on a Monday
- The residue after an ore, etc, has been washed. The washings have a higher concentration of metal
Did you know? The word 'wash' is also related to the Old English word 'wæsc', which meant 'to moisten' or 'to wet'. This connection highlights the evolution of the word's meaning over time.