noun
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an electrically operated machine for washing, rinsing, and drying dishes, cutlery, etc
-
a person who washes dishes, etc
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of dishwasher
Explanation
If you work as a dishwasher, your job involves cleaning the glasses, plates, bowls, and silverware at a restaurant or cafe. You're also a dishwasher if you volunteer to wash the dishes after dinner at home. Some dishwashers scrub pots, pans, and dishes by hand, while others simply load up the other kind of dishwasher — a machine that automatically cleans dishes. While a human dishwasher has to scrub to get the dishes clean, a mechanical dishwasher sprays extremely hot water to do the same job. This new and improved type of dishwasher was invented in the late 19th century.
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:
Cerón has worked as a dishwasher at the company for about eight years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026
I like to save on time and kitchen clean-up because I don’t have a dishwasher, so store-bought is my preferred option.
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
Once it missed the dishwasher altogether, sending a plate clattering to the floor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
They are used in electronics like your iPhone, helping you seamlessly switch between apps, or in your dishwasher when it recalls the appropriate cycles to run.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 3, 2026
She was putting the last glass in the dishwasher when Evan walked in.
From "The Lemonade War" by Jacqueline Davies
They include steel, aluminum, clothing, smartphones and other electronics, fish, dishwashers, washing machines, and stoves.
From Slate ● Aug. 25, 2026
Ovens, hobs, tumble dryers, washing machines and dishwashers can all make indoor spaces warmer.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026
Running washing machines and dishwashers with full loads.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
"Raise your thermostat as high as is comfortably safe," the company urged, while calling on residents to delay using laundry, dishwashers and electric vehicle chargers until after 8:00 pm.
From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026
I wore a starched white jacket out in the dining room, where the waiters would put the customers’ dirty plates and silver on big aluminum trays which I would take back to the kitchen’s dishwashers.
From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey
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.
