wash

I. verb Etymology: Middle English, from Old English wascan; akin to Old High German waskan to wash and perhaps to Old English wæter water Date: before 12th century transitive verb 1. a. to cleanse by or as if by the action of liquid (as water) b. to remove (as dirt) by rubbing or drenching with liquid 2. to cleanse (fur) by licking or by rubbing with a paw moistened with saliva 3. a. to flush or moisten (a bodily part or injury) with a liquid b. (1) to wet thoroughly ; drench (2) to overspread with light ; suffuse c. to pass a liquid (as water) over or through especially so as to carry off material from the surface or interior 4. to flow along or dash or overflow against <

waves washing the shore

> 5. to move, carry, or deposit by or as if by the force of water in motion <

houses washed away by the flood

> 6. a. to subject (as crushed ore) to the action of water to separate valuable material b. to separate (particles) from a substance (as ore) by agitation with or in water c. (1) to pass through a bath to carry off impurities or soluble components (2) to pass (a gas or gaseous mixture) through or over a liquid to purify it especially by removing soluble components 7. a. to cover or daub lightly with or as if with an application of a thin liquid (as whitewash or varnish) b. to depict or paint by a broad sweep of thin color with a brush 8. to cause to swirl <

washing coffee around in his cup

> 9. launder 3 <

how the mob washes its money through corrupt bankers — Vincent Teresa

> intransitive verb 1. to wash oneself or a part of one's body 2. to become worn away by the action of water 3. to clean something by rubbing or dipping in water 4. a. to become carried along on water ; drift <

cakes of ice washing along

> b. to pour, sweep, or flow in a stream or current <

waves of pioneers washing westward — Green Peyton

> 5. to serve as a cleansing agent <

this soap washes thoroughly

> 6. a. to undergo laundering <

this dress doesn't wash well

> b. (1) to undergo testing successfully ; work 4 <

an interesting theory, but it just won't wash

> (2) to gain acceptance ; inspire belief <

the story didn't wash with me

> II. 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 III. adjective Date: 1848 1. involving essentially simultaneous purchase and sale of the same security <

spurious market activity resulting from wash trading

> 2. washable <

wash fabric

>