wash
verb (used with object)
to apply water or some other liquid to (something or someone) for the purpose of cleansing; cleanse by dipping, rubbing, or scrubbing in water or some other liquid.
were washing
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past progressiveof wash.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
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.
“Does that mean that fans wanted to come because they were washing away the scandal? I don’t know,” O’Brien said.
From New York Times ● Mar. 30, 2024
"When we were finished getting the mud, the men were washing off in a nearby river, and that scene immediately resonated because of the cleansing and transformative powers of water," Lovelace says.
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2023
I theorized that copper ions blasted off the cupola roof by the photons in ultraviolet light were washing down on the shingles with each rainfall.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 4, 2023
In a Yahoo News/YouGov survey, only 55 percent of Republicans, versus 67 percent of Democrats, said they were washing their hands more often.
From Slate ● Mar. 17, 2020
Each time, the sheet was lifted only high enough to expose the area we were washing, making it feel as though there wasn’t a whole person beneath the linen, just a puzzle of disembodied parts.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
