brainwash
Americanverb (used with object)
noun
-
the process of brainwashing.
-
a subjection to brainwashing.
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
brainwashsimple
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brainwashessimple
-
have brainwashedperfect
-
has brainwashedperfect
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am brainwashingprogressive
-
are brainwashingprogressive
-
is brainwashingprogressive
-
have been brainwashingperfect progressive
-
has been brainwashingperfect progressive
Past
-
brainwashedsimple
-
had brainwashedperfect
-
was brainwashingprogressive
-
were brainwashingprogressive
-
had been brainwashingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of brainwash
First recorded in 1950–55; back formation from brainwashing
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:
As legal analyst Mark Joseph Stern explained at Slate, Alito “reframes these utterly innocent children’s books as insidious propaganda designed to brainwash children.”
From Salon ● Jul. 2, 2025
“It created a model that proved to local municipalities, to local politicians that these spaces weren’t dangerous places that are going to brainwash your kids or whatever.”
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 13, 2023
“If we had the power to brainwash kids, we’d have them do their homework.”
From Washington Times ● Nov. 6, 2022
"He was trying to brainwash me, manipulate me and he still had control of me and I didn't like it," she said.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2021
They made us watch a film, a terrible bit of puritanical brainwash.
From "The Joy Luck Club" by Amy Tan
Young people mustn’t watch too many films with violence because it brainwashes and disturbs them.
From The Guardian ● Nov. 6, 2015
I am not saying the Army brainwashes you.
From Time Magazine Archive
In a totalitarian sci-fi world, a hammer thrown by a young athlete smashes a "Big Brother" figure declaiming to brainwashed citizens from a vast screen.
From Barron's ● Mar. 29, 2026
In extracts from his forthcoming book, published by the Times on Friday, Tom Bower claims Queen Camilla told a friend Meghan had "brainwashed" Prince Harry.
From BBC ● Mar. 14, 2026
Mark Harris realized that his father and Freeman had brainwashed him.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 12, 2026
The idea that someone could be brainwashed to the point of self-destruction shook the public to its core.
From Salon ● May 18, 2025
Ellis, I love you even though you are brainwashed.
From "Ask the Passengers" by A.S. King
"Actually, there's brainwashing here in China too, but it's not as severe," he said.
From Barron's ● Mar. 29, 2026
She accuses the group of "brainwashing" her son, convincing him they were defending the ethnic Kurdish minorities in Turkey, Iraq, Syria and Iran.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2025
“Founded in 1999 on the heels of the Satanic ‘panic’ and growing steadily ever since, Infowars has distinguished itself as an invaluable tool for brainwashing and controlling the masses,” he wrote.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 16, 2024
As long as this public perception remains and compounds with Stake’s already shady reputation, then the brainwashing might fall flat.
From Slate ● Nov. 14, 2024
My father says he doesn’t believe in brainwashing children.
From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood
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.
