I. wash 1 S1 W3 /wɒʃ $ wɒːʃ, wɑːʃ/ BrE AmE verb
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ wash , ↑ washer , ↑ washing ; adjective : ↑ washable , ↑ unwashed ; verb : ↑ wash ]
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: wascan ]
1 . WASH SOMETHING [transitive] to clean something using water and a type of soap:
This shirt needs washing.
It’s your turn to wash the dishes.
2 . WASH YOURSELF [intransitive and transitive] to clean your body with soap and water:
Amy washed and went to bed.
She had a hot bath and washed her hair.
I’m just going to wash my hands.
wash yourself
When a cat has finished eating, it often washes itself.
REGISTER
In everyday English, people usually say that someone has a wash (BrE) or washes up (AmE) rather than washes .
3 . FLOW [intransitive, transitive always + adverb/preposition] if a river, sea etc washes somewhere, or if something carried by the river or sea is washed somewhere, it flows or moves there:
The waves washed against the shore.
The sea washed over her.
The young man was washed overboard (=pushed from a boat into the sea by the force of the water) in the storm.
The body was washed ashore (=brought to the shore by waves) .
4 . something doesn’t/won’t wash (with somebody) spoken used to say that you do not believe or accept someone’s explanation, reason, attitude etc:
I’m sorry but all his charm just doesn’t wash with me.
5 . wash your hands of something to refuse to be responsible for something any more:
I’ve washed my hands of the whole affair.
6 . wash your mouth out! spoken old-fashioned used to tell someone who has just sworn or said something rude that they should not have spoken that way
7 . wash well to be easy to clean using soap and water:
Silk doesn’t wash well.
⇨ wash/air your dirty linen/laundry (in public) at ↑ dirty 1 (7)
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ wash to clean something with soap and water:
Our car needs washing.
|
Make sure that you wash your hands.
▪ do the washing British English , do the laundry American English to wash clothes that need to be washed:
Did you do the laundry this morning?
|
I do the washing on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
▪ do the washing up British English ( also wash up British English ), do the dishes American English to wash all the cups, plates, knives etc that you have used during a meal:
If you do the cooking tonight, I’ll do the washing up.
|
Who’s going to do the dishes?
▪ cleanse formal to make something completely clean, especially using a special substance:
Carefully cleanse the cut to get rid of any grit or dirt.
▪ rinse to wash something with water in order to remove soap or dirt:
I’ll just rinse the lettuce under the tap.
▪ scrub to make something very clean, using a stiff brush and water, or soap and water:
Lou was on her knees, scrubbing the kitchen floor.
▪ mop to wash a floor with a wet ↑ mop (=special stick with thick threads on the end) :
A cleaner mopped the floor between the beds.
wash something ↔ away phrasal verb
1 . if water washes something away, it carries it away with great force:
Floods in Bangladesh have washed hundreds of homes away.
2 . to get rid of unhappy feelings, thoughts, or memories:
My anxiety was washed away.
wash something ↔ down phrasal verb
1 . to clean something large using a lot of water:
Can you wash down the driveway?
2 . to drink something with or after food or with medicine to help you swallow it
wash something ↔ down with
steak and chips washed down with red wine
wash off phrasal verb
1 . wash something ↔ off to clean dirt, dust etc from the surface of something with water
2 . if a substance washes off, you can remove it from the surface of something by washing:
Will this paint wash off?
wash out phrasal verb
1 . wash something ↔ out to wash the inside of something quickly:
I’ll just wash out this vase for flowers.
2 . if a substance washes out, you can remove it from a material by washing it:
a dye that won’t wash out
3 . be washed out if an event is washed out, it cannot continue because of rain:
The summer fair was washed out by the English weather.
⇨ ↑ washed-out , ↑ washout
wash over somebody phrasal verb
1 . if a feeling washes over you, you suddenly feel it very strongly:
A feeling of relief washed over her.
2 . if you let something wash over you, you do not pay close attention to it:
She was content to let the conversation wash over her.
wash up phrasal verb
1 . British English to wash plates, dishes, knives etc ⇨ ↑ washing-up
2 . American English to wash your hands:
Go wash up before dinner.
3 . wash something ↔ up if waves wash something up, they carry it to the shore
wash something ↔ up on
His body was washed up on the beach the next morning.
⇨ ↑ washed-up
II. wash 2 BrE AmE noun
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ wash , ↑ washer , ↑ washing ; adjective : ↑ washable , ↑ unwashed ; verb : ↑ wash ]
1 . ACT OF CLEANING [countable usually singular] an act of cleaning something using soap and water:
Those jeans need a good wash (=a thorough wash) .
I’ll just have a quick wash before we go out.
2 . CLOTHES [singular, uncountable] clothes that are to be washed, are being washed, or have just been washed:
You’d better put that shirt in the wash.
Do you need me to put another wash on?
3 . SKIN [countable] a liquid used to clean your skin:
an anti-bacterial facial wash
4 . BOAT the wash the movement of water caused by a passing boat:
the wash of a large motorboat
5 . COLOUR [countable] a very thin transparent layer of paint or colour
6 . AREA OF LAND the wash the area of land that is sometimes covered by the sea
7 . it will all come out in the wash spoken
a) used to tell someone not to worry about a problem because it will be solved in the future
b) used to say that the truth about something will be known in the end