wish-wash
Americannoun
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a drink that is thin and weak.
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foolish talk or writing; claptrap.
noun
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any thin weak drink
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rubbishy talk or writing
Etymology
Origin of wish-wash
First recorded in 1780–90; extracted from wishy-washy
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.
“He has common sense. He doesn’t put up with wish-wash; he’s not your standard politician. He stands up for principle and takes care of his people.”
From The Guardian ● Mar. 1, 2016
A slice of bread each and the wish-wash of a thrice-brewed pennyworth of tea had been their morning meal, and there was no prospect of dinner.
From Children of the Ghetto A Study of a Peculiar People by Zangwill, Israel
Not a bad exchange for the Frenchman’s wish-wash claret, I suspect.”
From Ronald Morton, or the Fire Ships A Story of the Last Naval War by Hoggans, T.
No: look at the buoy, wish-wash, rolling lazily, bobbing in the water, a lazy, idle cask, with nothing in the world to do on this day of busy mischief.
From Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science Volume 11, No. 23, February, 1873 by Various
All the world was lapsing into a grey wish-wash of nothingness, she had no contact and no connection anywhere.
From Women in Love by Lawrence, D. H. (David Herbert)
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.
