rhizoverbBeta
DictionaryRoot: wascan
Old English

wascan

wash

Forms

  • wascan
  • wash — The consonant cluster and ending developed into the modern form.

Origin

An inherited Germanic cleaning verb with older Indo-European ancestry.

Note

The action can clean something or move it by flowing water.

4 / 5
A woman washes a muddy plate under running tap water, visibly scrubbing away brown residue with a sponge above a sink.
noun

washing

WAH-shing/ˈwɑːʃɪŋ/

The act of cleaning with water or another liquid.

Etymology
washOld Englishwash
+ingEnglishan action or activity

The ending turns the cleansing verb into the name of an activity. Old English already had this action noun for washing clothes; the selected sense covers cleaning with liquid more generally.

Full entry

Related word entries