washing

Reading level: hard

Estimated CEFR level: C1 — Advanced

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun the work of cleansing (usually with soap and water)
  2. noun garments or white goods that can be cleaned by laundering
  3. verb clean with some chemical process

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English waschynge /wasshynge /weschynge, from Old English *wæsċing /*weasċing (attested in weasċingweġ), from Proto-West Germanic *waskingu. By surface analysis, wash + -ing. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Waaskenge (“washing”), West Frisian wasking (“washing”), Dutch wassing (“washing”), German Waschung (“washing”).

In classic literature

Synonyms

wash, lavation

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