wash up

wash  (wsh, wôsh)

v. washed, wash·ing, wash·es

v.tr.

1.

a. To cleanse, using water or other liquid, usually with soap, detergent, or bleach, by immersing, dipping, rubbing, or scrubbing: wash one's hands; wash windows.

b. To soak, rinse out, and remove (dirt or stain) with or as if with water: wash grease out of overalls.

2. To make moist or wet; drench: Tears washed the child's cheeks.

3. To flow over, against, or past: waves that washed the sandy shores.

4. To carry, erode, remove, or destroy by the action of moving water: Heavy rains washed the topsoil away.

5. To rid of corruption or guilt; cleanse or purify: wash sins away.

6. To cover or coat with a watery layer of paint or other coloring substance.

7. Chemistry

a. To purify (a gas) by passing through or over a liquid, as to remove soluble matter.

b. To pass a solvent, such as distilled water, through (a precipitate).

8. To separate constituents of (an ore) by immersion in or agitation with water.

9. To cause to undergo a swirling action: washed the tea around in the cup.

v.intr.

1. To cleanse something in or by means of water or other liquid.

2.

a. To undergo washing without fading or other damage: This fabric will wash.

b. Informal To hold up under examination; be convincing: "That [proclamation], of course, will not wash" John Hughes.

3. To flow, sweep, or beat with a characteristic lapping sound: Waves washed over the pilings.

4. To be carried away, removed, or drawn by the action of water.

n.

1. The act or process of washing or cleansing.

2. A quantity of articles washed or intended for washing: The wash is on the back porch.

3. Waste liquid; swill.

4. Fermented liquid from which liquor is distilled.

5. A preparation or product used in washing or coating.

6. A cosmetic or medicinal liquid, such as a mouthwash.

7.

a. A thin layer of water color or India ink spread on a drawing.

b. A light tint or hue: "a wash of red sunset" Thomas Pynchon.

8.

a. A rush or surge of water or waves.

b. The sound of this rush or surge.

9.

a. Removal or erosion of soil by the action of moving water.

b. A deposit of recently eroded debris.

10.

a. Low or marshy ground washed by tidal waters.

b. A stretch of shallow water.

11. Western U.S. The dry bed of a stream.

12. Turbulence in air or water caused by the motion or action of an oar, propeller, jet, or airfoil.

13. Informal An activity, action, or enterprise that yields neither marked gain nor marked loss: "[The company] doesn't do badly. That is, it's a wash" Harper's.

adj.

1. Used for washing.

2. Being such that washing is possible; washable.

Phrasal Verbs:

wash down

1. To clean by washing with water from top to bottom: wash down the walls.

2. To follow the ingestion of (food, for example) with the ingestion of a liquid: washed the cake down with coffee.

wash out

1.

a. To remove or be removed by washing.

b. To cause to fade by laundering: color that had been washed out by bleach.

2. To carry or wear away or be carried or worn away by the action of moving water: The river rose and washed out the dam. The road has washed out five miles down the mountain.

3. To deplete or become depleted of vitality: By evening, I was washed out from overwork.

4. To eliminate or be eliminated as unsatisfactory: a football player who was washed out; an officer candidate who washed out after one month.

5. To cause (an event) to be rained out.

wash up

1. To wash one's hands.

2. Chiefly British To wash dishes after a meal.

3. To burn out; exhaust: all washed up as a politician.

Idioms:

come out in the wash Slang

1. To be revealed eventually: The real reasons for her resignation will come out in the wash.

2. To turn out well in the end: Don't worry: this project will come out in the wash.

wash (one's) hands of

1. To refuse to accept responsibility for.

2. To abandon; renounce.

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[Middle English washen, from Old English wacsan, wæscan; see wed-¹ in Indo-European roots.]

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wash up

Verb

1. to wash used dishes and cutlery after a meal

2. US & Canad to wash one's face and hands

Thesaurus

Verb	1.	wash up - wash one's face and hands; "She freshened up in the bathroom" lave refreshen, freshen, freshen up, refresh - become or make oneself fresh again; "She freshened up after the tennis game"
	2.	wash up - carry somewhere (of water or current or waves); "The tide washed up the corpse" wash up - be carried somewhere by water or as if by water; "The body washed up on the beach" channel, transmit, carry, impart, conduct, convey - transmit or serve as the medium for transmission; "Sound carries well over water"; "The airwaves carry the sound"; "Many metals conduct heat"
	3.	wash up - wash dishes; "I cook and my husband washes up after dinner" do the dishes clean, make clean - make clean by removing dirt, filth, or unwanted substances from; "Clean the stove!"; "The dentist cleaned my teeth"
	4.	wash up - be carried somewhere by water or as if by water; "The body washed up on the beach" appear - come into sight or view; "He suddenly appeared at the wedding"; "A new star appeared on the horizon" wash up - carry somewhere (of water or current or waves); "The tide washed up the corpse"
	5.	wash up - wear out completely; "This kind of work exhausts me"; "I'm beat"; "He was all washed up after the exam" exhaust, tucker, tucker out, beat fag out, wear down, wear out, wear upon, weary, tire out, fatigue, jade, outwear, tire, fag, wear - exhaust or get tired through overuse or great strain or stress; "We wore ourselves out on this hike" frazzle - exhaust physically or emotionally; "She was frazzled after the visit of her in-laws" play - exhaust by allowing to pull on the line; "play a hooked fish" kill - tire out completely; "The daily stress of her work is killing her"