I. ˈblēch verb
Etymology: Middle English blechen, from Old English blǣcean; akin to Old English blāc pale; probably akin to Latin flagrare to burn — more at black
Date: before 12th century
transitive verb
1. : to remove color or stains from
2.
a. : to make whiter or lighter especially by physical or chemical removal of color
bleach clothing
the sun had bleach ed her hair
b. : to remove, make dull, or sanitize as if by removing color
bleach es colonialism of its genocidal legacy — H. A. Giroux
intransitive verb
1. : to grow white or lose color
2. of coral : to expel symbiotic zooxanthellae exposing a white skeleton
• bleach·able ˈblē-chə-bəl adjective
II. noun
Date: 1887
1. : the act or process of bleaching
2. : a preparation used in bleaching
3. : the degree of whiteness obtained by bleaching