Link Centre Dictionary

whitewash

whi·te·wash

UK/ˈwaɪtwɒʃ/ US/ˈʍaɪtˌwɑʃ/ rare archaic informal literary obsolete slang
noun (3) verb (3)

noun

1.

a defeat in which the losing person or team fails to score

2.

wash consisting of lime and size in water; used for whitening walls and other surfaces

3.

a specious or deceptive clearing that attempts to gloss over failings and defects

verb

1.

jump down from an elevated point

  • “the parachutist didn”
  • “;”
  • “;”
Synonyms
2.

cover with whitewash

  • “whitewash walls”
3.

Origin

The noun is derived from white (adjective) + wash (noun). Noun sense 5.1 (“medicinal preparation for treating skin diseases”) is a calque of New Latin lōtiō alba (literally “white wash”). The verb is derived partly from white (adjective) + wash (verb), and partly from the noun.

Phrases

  • whitewash gum

Related words

Word family

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.