Chinese word

洗

Pronunciation

Pinyinxǐ

Meaning

  • verbwash

Example

我去洗碗吧。wǒ qù xí wǎn ba

I will go wash the dishes.

Illustration for 洗 (wash)

More examples

我每天晚上洗澡。wǒ měi tiān wǎn shàng xí zǎo

I bathe every evening.

Core concept

Rinses or cleans something by passing liquid over it until unwanted material is removed.

Common phrases

  • 洗手xí shǒu

    wash one's hands

  • 洗澡xí zǎo

    bathe

  • 洗衣服xǐ yī fú

    wash clothes

Similar words

洗澡xí zǎo: Cleaning the body or hair with water to keep it clean.
洗脸xí liǎn: Cleaning the face with water to remove dirt or sweat.
洗手xí shǒu: Cleaning the hands with water, sometimes with soap.

Definition in Chinese

用液体清除污垢或使物品恢复洁净状态，也可指洗衣、洗澡等具体行为。yòng yè tǐ qīng chú wū gòu huò shǐ wù pǐn huī fù jié jìng zhuàng tài yě kě zhǐ xǐ yī xí zǎo děng jù tǐ xíng wéi

Word origin

洗 (xǐ, "wash") combines a water radical with a phonetic part, and its core water-cleaning sense supports its use for laundry, dishes, and the body.

Usage tips

  • In spoken Chinese, repeating a verb can make a household action sound brief or light; this changes the action's tone, not the verb's basic cleaning meaning.

Other meanings

  • do the laundryverb
  • rinseverb

Opposites

  • 弄脏nòng zāngsoilverb

Related words

Word lists with this word