bathe
Americanverb (used with object)
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bathes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bathed,
past participle, past
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bathing
present participle
-
to immerse (all or part of the body) in water or some other liquid, for cleansing, refreshment, etc.
-
to wet; wash.
-
to moisten or suffuse with any liquid.
-
to apply water or other liquid to, with a sponge, cloth, etc..
to bathe a wound.
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to wash over or against, as by the action of the sea, a river, etc..
incoming tides bathing the coral reef.
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to cover or surround.
a shaft of sunlight bathing the room; a morning fog bathing the city.
verb (used without object)
-
bathes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bathed,
past participle, past
-
bathing
present participle
noun
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bathes
plural
verb
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(intr) to swim or paddle in a body of open water or a river, esp for pleasure
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(tr) to apply liquid to (skin, a wound, etc) in order to cleanse or soothe
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to immerse or be immersed in a liquid
to bathe machine parts in oil
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to wash in a bath
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(tr; often passive) to suffuse
her face was bathed with radiance
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(tr) (of water, the sea, etc) to lap; wash
waves bathed the shore
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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bathesimple
-
bathessimple
-
have bathedperfect
-
has bathedperfect
-
am bathingprogressive
-
are bathingprogressive
-
is bathingprogressive
-
have been bathingperfect progressive
-
has been bathingperfect progressive
Past
-
bathedsimple
-
had bathedperfect
-
was bathingprogressive
-
were bathingprogressive
-
had been bathingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bathe
before 1000; Middle English bath ( i ) en, Old English bathian, equivalent to bæth bath 1 + -ian infinitive suffix
Explanation
When you bathe, you wash yourself. A cat bathes itself by licking its fur with a rough tongue. If you're human, don't try that technique. The word bathe generally means to clean yourself in a tub of water — as opposed to shower, which means to wash beneath a stream of water. You can, however, use this verb to describe almost any kind of cleansing: you might bathe the scrape on a child's knee with a soapy cloth. Poetically, the sun can also bathe, or saturate, something with light. In Britain, to bathe also means "to swim."
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:
A 10-day sojourn at the composer’s West Hollywood, Calif., home was congenial and productive, even though Auden reportedly declined to shower or bathe.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
Officials have withdrawn advice for people not to bathe at Portstewart Strand after tests of the water showed it posed no risk to the public.
From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026
Many here lack water to bathe and flush toilets.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 4, 2026
She played the album nonstop: “I was known not to take requests, but now I wouldn’t even change the album. Everyone in the bar was obliged to bathe in the sounds of the future.”
From Salon ● Mar. 24, 2026
They wouldn’t let me run water to bathe my forehead, so now I’m walking around with a giant lump over my right eye.
From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank
Inspired by traditional Indian cooking and Southeast Asian flavors, this Food52 recipe bathes and simmers sautéed heads of romaine in a delicious mixture of gingery coconut milk, fresh lime juice and fish sauce.
From Salon ● Jul. 25, 2026
Gray clouds darken the sky, but Leutze bathes Washington in light, depicting him as an unflinching leader of a squad of men that purposely includes a Native American and a black man.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 20, 2026
She's holding a container of ice-cold, artificial cerebrospinal fluid, which mimics the liquid that bathes the brain and spinal cord.
From BBC ● Dec. 26, 2025
John Andrews, MD, a resident in neurosurgery, placed the tissue on a nutrient medium that resembles the cerebrospinal fluid that bathes the brain.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 15, 2024
Once I’m out of the woods and on the main road, a full moon bathes the fields around me in a shimmering, pearly light.
From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline
The living room, bathed in natural light, offers vaulted ceilings, a chic bar area, and a fireplace.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
Tracing Saint’s rise and fall over six seasons, the final episode was bathed in tragedy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026
Rickards and others spoke of Parton's unifying spirit, her devotion to mountainous, working-class East Tennessee, and how the singer-songwriter's presence bathed the region in a sort of country glamor.
From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026
Bordeaux was bathed in sunshine on the afternoon of Saturday, 11 June, tens of thousands of Welsh supporters descending on the French city for their opening game against Slovakia.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
"I say I'm just back. Haven't bathed even. Michael comes in to-night."
From "The Sun Also Rises" by Ernest Hemingway
“It’s so funny because it’s like these people have maybe never seen a woman in a bathing suit with hairy legs,” she says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
“Floor-to-ceiling windows opened to the south and east, bathing the space in natural light,” Jacobs gushed.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026
Dickson said the brand had missed the mark in key summer categories such as dresses, shorts and bathing suits and that its marketing failed to drive enough business.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
More than a third of England's designated bathing waters are in Devon and Cornwall.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
Her bathing suit is a blue and green splash of batik.
From "A Heart in a Body in the World" by Deb Caletti
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.
