noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of cleanser
before 1000; Middle English; Old English clǣnsere; see cleanse, -er 1
Explanation
A substance you use to scour, scrub, or wash something is a cleanser. Even if you sweep the kitchen floor every day, eventually you'll need to give it a deep clean with a mop and a cleanser. Cleanser and cleaner are very similar, and they can be swapped in usage. However, it's more common to save cleanser for the stuff used to do the cleaning, rather than the person who cleans. You might wash your face with a special cleanser every night, or sprinkle a powerful cleanser in the tub to get it extra clean. And a palate cleanser is something (like sorbet) that clears tastes from your mouth before you taste something else.
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:
She starts by using an exfoliating mitt to apply an oil-based Nerra cleanser and follows with Prequel’s Gleanser, a hydrating, glycerin-based wash that she also uses on her face.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
And after a local screwpine sorbet palate cleanser, Maldivian chefs slice up Wagyu tenderloin alongside baby leeks, eggplant, fennel pollen and coconut jus.
From Salon ● Dec. 27, 2025
But for many people, trying to analyse the ingredients list on a bottle of moisturiser, cleanser or serum can be overwhelming.
From BBC ● Dec. 13, 2025
But for me, I should be the constant palate cleanser.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2025
For years Mama begged him to at least wash his face in the morning and even got him special men’s woodsy-scented foaming face cleanser, but he didn’t touch it.
From "Amina's Voice" by Hena Khan
Using multiple exfoliants, acid-based cleansers or granular scrubs can be too harsh.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
Aesthetic and dermatology doctor Ross Perry thinks dupes are fine to use for "basic skincare" like moisturisers and cleansers.
From BBC ● Dec. 13, 2025
Non soap cleansers are often labeled with things like “non-soap,” “soap-free,” “sulfate-free,” or “pH neutral”.
From National Geographic ● Nov. 28, 2023
You can also minimize overall skin dryness, irritation and itching by picking gentle cleansers or bar soaps that contain moisturizing ingredients such as hyaluronic acid and ceramides, Garshick said.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 23, 2023
II.82 purgers: healers, cleansers of the land from tyranny.
From The New Hudson Shakespeare: Julius Cæsar by Ebenezer Charlton Black
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
