DETERGENT


Meaning of DETERGENT in English

/di terr"jeuhnt/ , n.

1. any of a group of synthetic, organic, liquid or water-soluble cleaning agents that, unlike soap, are not prepared from fats and oils, are not inactivated by hard water, and have wetting-agent and emulsifying-agent properties.

2. a similar substance that is oil-soluble and capable of holding insoluble foreign matter in suspension, used in lubricating oils, dry-cleaning preparations, etc.

3. any cleansing agent, including soap. Cf. anionic detergent, cationic detergent, synthetic detergent .

adj.

4. cleansing; purging.

[ 1610-20; ( detergent- (s. of detergens ) wiping off (prp. of detergere ). See DETERGE, -ENT ]

Random House Webster's Unabridged English dictionary.      Полный английский словарь Вебстер - Random House .