wipe
Americanverb (used with object)
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wipes,
present (3rd person singular)
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wiped,
past participle, past
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wiping
present participle
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to rub lightly with or on a cloth, towel, paper, the hand, etc., in order to clean or dry the surface of.
He wiped the furniture with a damp cloth.
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to rub or draw (something) over a surface, as in cleaning or drying.
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to remove by rubbing with or on something (usually followed by away, off, out, etc.).
Wipe the dirt off your shoes. Wipe the dust from the pictures.
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to remove as if by rubbing (usually followed by away, off, etc.).
Wipe that smile off your face!
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to erase, as from existence or memory (often followed byfrom ).
to wipe a thought from one's mind.
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to erase (magnetic tape, a recording, etc.)
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to delete the entire contents and settings of (a digital storage device, mobile device, etc.).
She remotely wiped her computer after it was stolen.
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Plumbing.
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to apply (solder in a semifluid state) by spreading with leather or cloth over the part to be soldered.
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to form (a joint) in this manner.
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Machinery. (of a rotating shaft or the like) to melt the brasses of (a bearing) through friction.
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Australian Slang. to refuse to have anything to do with; reject; dismiss.
verb (used without object)
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wipes,
present (3rd person singular)
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wiped,
past participle, past
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wiping
present participle
noun
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wipes
plural
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an act of wiping.
He gave a few quick wipes to the furniture.
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a rub, as of one thing over another.
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Also called wipe-off. Movies. a technique in film editing by which the projected image of a scene appears to be pushed or wiped off the screen by the image that follows.
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a piece of absorbent material, as of paper or cloth, used for wiping.
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a sweeping stroke or blow.
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a gibe.
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Machinery. wiper.
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(in a video game) a defeat in which all cooperative player characters in a group are killed.
a total party wipe.
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Slang. a handkerchief.
verb phrase
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wipe out
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to destroy completely; demolish.
The entire city was wiped out.
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Informal. to murder; kill.
They wiped him out to keep him from testifying.
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Slang. to beat decisively, as in sports.
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Slang. (in sports) to be taken out of competition by a fall, accident, collision, etc.
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Slang. to intoxicate or cause to become high, especially on narcotic drugs.
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wipe up to clean completely by wiping.
to wipe up the mess on the floor.
verb
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to rub (a surface or object) lightly, esp with (a cloth, hand, etc), as in removing dust, water, grime, etc
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to remove by or as if by rubbing lightly
he wiped the dirt from his hands
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to eradicate or cancel (a thought, memory, etc)
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to erase a recording from (an audio or video tape)
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informal to abandon or reject (a person)
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to apply (oil, grease, etc) by wiping
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to form (a joint between two lead pipes) with solder or soft lead
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informal to defeat someone decisively
noun
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the act or an instance of wiping
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(in film editing) an effect causing the transition from one scene to the next in which the image of the first scene appears to be wiped off the screen by that of the second
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dialect a sweeping blow or stroke
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dialect a gibe or jeer
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obsolete a slang name for handkerchief
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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wipesimple
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wipessimple
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have wipedperfect
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has wipedperfect
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am wipingprogressive
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are wipingprogressive
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is wipingprogressive
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have been wipingperfect progressive
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has been wipingperfect progressive
Past
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wipedsimple
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had wipedperfect
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was wipingprogressive
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were wipingprogressive
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had been wipingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of wipe
First recorded before 1000; Middle English wipen, Old English wīpian; cognate with Old High German wīfan “to wind round,” Gothic weipan “to crown”; perhaps akin to Latin vibrāre “to move to and fro”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
AI chip giant Nvidia's boss Jensen Huang said on Thursday that warnings artificial intelligence could wipe out humanity were "cheap" attempts to grab headlines.
From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026
Teams had to wipe down the balls after using them during the COVID-19 pandemic.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
You also need to wipe the agent’s memory.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
"That was the only time in my career when I had to stop recording to wipe away my tears," Dame Esther also said.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
I wipe my eyes and place my hand on the door.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
To examine what happens under realistic conditions, the researchers tested scented conventional liquid products as well as botanical-containing disinfectant sprays and wipes inside a model home on Purdue's campus.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 26, 2026
That is obviously several steps removed from GoPuff loading antibacterial wipes into my late-night cart.
From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026
Sinden said some parents had told her they were making their own baby wipes with kitchen towels.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
And AI is forcing us all to ponder: What are we supposed to do with our elongated lives if technology wipes out the jobs that once gave us purpose?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
She says that, but then she must see something wrong, because she does that disgusting mom move where she licks her thumb and wipes at something beside my mouth.
From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell
After the interval, Will Butt capitalised to extend Exeter's advantage to nine points when Antoine Dupont's clearing kick was charged down, but that was quickly wiped out by some wonderful attacking play by the hosts.
From BBC ● Oct. 18, 2026
Their findings challenge the idea that the disaster either completely wiped out nearby communities or left them largely unaffected.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 18, 2026
Tau Robotics’ humanoids vacuumed my floors and wiped my counters — with some help from humans behind the scenes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2026
“It’s not implausible to see some of the piers wiped out, or breakwaters or jetties.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026
She shoveled her last forkful of breakfast into her mouth, then wiped her hands on a napkin and moved over to a small corner desk.
From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste
Days later, Coxon resigned publicly with a viral warning that some AI researchers believed their products had a meaningful chance of wiping out humanity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
The robots carried out some tasks — such as mopping, vacuuming, wiping and dusting — with surprising skill.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
The issue has reared its head again this week in the fascinating first Test between South Africa and Australia in Durban, wiping out more than 60 overs across the first three days.
From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026
His monthly fuel costs jumped to $450,000, wiping out all profits.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
A moving man came to the top of the stairs and watched, wiping the sweat from his forehead, as the Krupnik family crawled in a line along the hall floor.
From "All About Sam" by Lois Lowry
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