bleaches

verb

present tense third-person singular of bleach
as in fades
to make white or whiter by removing color bleached the stained shirt back to its original white

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bleaches His owner, Hannah Gleason from Oklahoma, told Newsweek that the merle gene isn’t a coloring gene rather than a gene that bleaches the fur and causes lack of pigmentation which can lead to birth defects, blindness, deafness, or sometimes all three. — Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bleaches
  1. fades
  2. brightens
  3. whitens
Verb
  • Stimulus trickling in Economists expect better growth for the rest of the year, as adverse weather fades and local governments accelerate fiscal spending.
    — Anniek Bao, CNBC, 31 Aug. 2026
  • The sibling drama, meanwhile, rather fades out of view amid these loftier goings-on; the film’s narrative begins to feel devised by the old parlor game Consequences, repeatedly wrenched in erratic new directions.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of fades
Verb
  • Along with many of the brand’s red light therapy tools, this device helps minimize fine lines and wrinkles, brightens your complexion, and, well, makes your skin look better.
    — Alyssa Grabinski, PEOPLE, 1 Sep. 2026
  • And as a lamp lights up a dark room, our faithfulness to God brightens the path for others, including government officials, to be more faithful, too.
    — The Christian Science Monitor, Christian Science Monitor, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of brightens
Verb
  • According to Hill, good old-fashioned sunlight naturally kills bacteria, refreshes items, and whitens fabrics.
    — Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Jan. 2026
Definition of whitens

Browse Nearby Words

bleached
bleaches
bleaching
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bleaches.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bleaches. Accessed 6 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All