Subscriber login


Forgot your password?

Library card login

Other

bleach

Pronunciation: /bliːtʃ/

Translate bleach | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of bleach

verb

[with object]
  • 1cause (a material such as cloth, paper, or hair) to become white or much lighter by a chemical process or by exposure to sunlight:a new formula to bleach and brighten clothing (as adjective bleached)permed and bleached hair
  • deprive of vitality or substance:his contributions to the album are bleached of personality
  • 2clean or sterilize (a drain, sink, etc.) with bleach.

noun

[mass noun]
  • a chemical (typically a solution of sodium hypochlorite or hydrogen peroxide) used to make materials whiter or for sterilizing drains, sinks, etc.: how can I get all those stains out of my wash without bleach?

Origin:

Old English blǣcan (verb), blǣce (noun), from blǣc 'pale', of Germanic origin; related to bleak1

bleach in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of bleach in the US English dictionary

Nearby words

  |  Cite

More words in this category

Word of the day

secretagogue

/ sɪˈkriːtəgɒg /
noun
a substance which promotes secretion …