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car wash

American  
Or carwash

noun

  • car washes
    plural
  1. a place or structure having special equipment for washing automobiles.

  2. the washing of an automobile.

    The service station is offering free car washes to draw customers.


Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of car wash

First recorded in 1955–60

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:

Her client, who was grabbed by immigration agents at a car wash last August, was seeking asylum because of the violence endemic in his region of Mexico.

From Los Angeles Times Sep. 3, 2026

Microsoft’s new data center in Wisconsin will use about only four Olympic swimming pools of water this year, half as much as a car wash.

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 31, 2026

Photographs show buildings on the compound included a clinic and a car wash.

From BBC Jul. 23, 2026

She’s looking for work as a cook after being laid off from a car wash in January.

From Salon Apr. 9, 2026

Migrants at the car wash tell him about the trains.

From "Enrique's Journey" by Sonia Nazario

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