Washed

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /wɒʃt/

Definitions

1. To have performed the act of cleaning an item by applying water and possibly detergent
2. to have eliminated stains or impurities from a surface by means of rinsing
3. To have made something clean by applying water or another cleansing fluid

Etymology: The past form "washed" is simple enough, but the verb behind it has a surprisingly wet pedigree. Its ancestor reaches back to a Proto-Indo-European root, *wed-, meaning "wet" or "water," which also gave English "water" itself. Through Proto-Germanic and Old English "wascan," the sense has stayed steady for millennia: to make something clean by applying water. The past tense simply follows the regular pattern of English verbs, adding "-ed" to the stem, so "washed" is the same verb in its finished form. Its wider family is broad: German "waschen," Dutch "wassen," Swedish "vaska," and Icelandic "vaska" all share the same root and the same basic meaning, and the German noun "Wäsche" reflects the household chore of laundry.

Synonyms: cleaned, rinsed, bathed, purified, cleansed

Antonyms: dirty, soiled, contaminated, stained, grimy