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rinsing

[rin-sing]
noun
  1. an act or instance of rinsing.
  2. Usually rinsings. the liquid with which anything has been rinsed.
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Origin of rinsing

First recorded in 1325–75, rinsing is from the Middle English word rinsynge. See rinse, -ing1

rinse

[rins]
verb (used with object), rinsed, rins·ing.
  1. to wash lightly, as by pouring water into or over or by dipping in water: to rinse a cup.
  2. to douse or drench in clean water as a final stage in washing.
  3. to remove (soap, dirt, etc.) by such a process (often followed by off).
  4. to use a rinse on (the hair).
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noun
  1. an act or instance of rinsing.
  2. the water used for rinsing.
  3. any preparation that may be used on the hair after washing, especially to tint or condition the hair.
  4. an act or instance of using such a preparation on the hair.
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Origin of rinse

1300–50; Middle English ryncen < Middle French rincer, Old French recincier < Vulgar Latin *recentiāre to make new, refresh, equivalent to Latin recent- (stem of recēns) fresh, recent + connective -i- + -āre infinitive suffix
Related formsrins·a·ble, rinse·a·ble, adjectiverins·a·bil·i·ty, rinse·a·bil·i·ty, nounpre·rinse, verb (used with object), pre·rinsed, pre·rins·ing.pre·rinse, nounun·rinsed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

bathesoakflushwashcleanwetdipwatersplashcleanse

Examples from the Web for rinsing

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • The mere Gabet, now free of her rheumatism, was able to help in the soaping and rinsing.

    The Dream

    Emile Zola

  • Which of them, if any, would it have been well to put in the rinsing water?

    Common Science

    Carleton W. Washburne

  • It will then be possible to mop up a little more of the rinsing liquid.

    On Laboratory Arts

    Richard Threlfall

  • The rinsing now takes place by either a shower or pail pour.

    The Mother and Her Child

    William S. Sadler

  • It is then taken out, and after rinsing is ready for the “weighting” operations.

    Textiles

    William H. Dooley

British Dictionary definitions for rinsing

rinse

verb (tr)
  1. to remove soap from (clothes, etc) by applying clean water in the final stage in washing
  2. to wash lightly, esp without using soapto rinse one's hands
  3. to give a light tint to (hair)
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noun
  1. the act or an instance of rinsing
  2. hairdressing a liquid preparation put on the hair when wet to give a tint to ita blue rinse
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Derived Formsrinsable or rinsible, adjectiverinsability or rinsibility, nounrinser, noun

Word Origin

C14: from Old French rincer, from Latin recens fresh, new
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for rinsing

rinse

v.

c.1300 "subject to light washing; wash with water only" (mid-13c. in surname Rinsfet), from Old French reincier (transitive) "to wash, cleanse" (12c., Modern French rincer), probably dissimilated from recincier, from Vulgar Latin *recentiare "to make fresh, to wash, cleanse with water," from Late Latin recentare "to make fresh," from Latin recens "new, fresh" (see recent). OED says similarity in form and sense with Old Norse hreinsa is "prob[ably] accidental." Meaning "wash a second time to remove remaining impurities, soap, etc." is from 1520s. Related: Rinsed; rinsing.

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rinse

n.

1837, from rinse (v.). As a hair treatment, by 1928.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper