n.
Function: noun
Date: 15th century
1 a : a piece of ground washed by the sea or river b : BOG , MARSH c (1) : a shallow body of water (2) : a shallow creek d West : the dry bed of a stream ― called also dry wash
2 a : the act or process or an instance of washing or being washed b : articles to be washed, being washed, or having been washed
3 : the surging action or sound of waves also : something resembling this action or sound <the warm wash of applause that followed her ⋯ introduction ― John Updike>
4 a : worthless especially liquid waste : REFUSE b : an insipid beverage c : vapid writing or speech
5 a : a sweep or splash especially of color made by or as if by a long stroke of a brush <in the gray wash of early morning> b : a thin coat of paint (as watercolor) c : a thin liquid used for coating a surface (as a wall)
6 : LOTION
7 : loose or eroded surface material of the earth (as rock debris) transported and deposited by running water
8 a : BACKWASH 1 b : a disturbance in a fluid (as water or the air) produced by the passage of an airfoil or propeller
9 : a situation in which losses and gains or advantages and disadvantages balance each other