WASHED OUT Synonyms: 260 Similar and Opposite Words

washed-out 1 of 2

adjective

ˈwȯsht-ˈau̇t

Definition of washed-out

as in faded

lacking intensity of color washed-out blond hair

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in tired

depleted in strength, energy, or freshness feeling washed-out after the endless primary season, the party's nominee needs a vacation more than anything

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

washed out

2 of 2

verb

past tense of wash out

as in collapsed

to be unsuccessful most of the participants in the tough training program washed out

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in bleached

to make white or whiter by removing color the bright lights of the TV studio washed out her facial features, making her look as white as a ghost

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in killed

to use up all the physical energy of that last illness washed the child out completely

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in rinsed

to pour liquid over or through in order to cleanse wash out your bathing suit in the sink

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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 washed-out

Adjective

Numerous roads washed-out, collapsing down into the ground. — Darcie Moran, Freep.com, 26 Apr. 2026 Images incorporated into the mayor’s video showed washed-out or collapsed roads, a car stuck in floodwaters and raging waterways. — Sophia Tareen, Los Angeles Times, 15 Mar. 2026 Intense flash flooding in towns like Wrightwood and Phelan in recent weeks caused devastating mudslides and washed-out roads, forcing people to be rescued by helicopter. — Zach Boetto, CBS News, 10 Jan. 2026 The magic lies in its warmth, which prevents the face from looking washed-out. — María Diez, Vogue, 17 Nov. 2025 Images generally have washed-out colors and an overall dark tone. — PC Magazine, 25 July 2025 Lindsay’s nails cause the color of the nail bed to look half white and half red or brown, whereas Terry’s nails cause the nail bed to look mostly white or washed-out, per Cleveland Clinic. — Caroline C. Boyle, USA TODAY, 12 Nov. 2024 This shade leans totally into nude territory without being washed-out. — Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 25 July 2024 The picture is bright, though some high-contrast shots of silhouetted objects show slightly muddy or washed-out shadow details; the contours of a lioness against a sunset are slightly indistinct, while trees against a stormy sky are a bit too light. — PCMAG, 30 May 2024

Verb

The river is particularly dangerous near Hazel Dell Parkway and 106th Street in Carmel, where fast-moving waters washed out a bridge, commissioners said. — John Tufts, IndyStar, 19 Aug. 2026 Heavy rains hammered Indiana over the past week, causing rivers to crest and setting records as roads and bridges were seriously damaged or washed out entirely by the rushing waters. — ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026 Gregory, who has been billed as a run-stopper, was washed out of his gap a few times. — Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 15 Aug. 2026 Flooding also washed out Arapahoe County Road 2 between Byers and Strasburg, according to a post from the Byers Fire Protection District. — Katie Langford, Denver Post, 15 Aug. 2026 Even Will Ferrell got washed out, tonsorially and qualitatively, in Netflix’s lifeless golfing comedy The Hawk. — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 14 Aug. 2026 The robot’s filter basket was completely washed out and ready for the next cleaning cycle. — John R. Delaney, PC Magazine, 5 Aug. 2026 Any flash from the impact itself is expected to be washed out by the bright lunar surface. — Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 4 Aug. 2026 More broadly, momentum investors appeared washed out into the end of July, which prompted technical selling. — Alex Harring,sean Conlon,sarah Min, CNBC, 4 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for washed-out

Adjective

The team behind this research studied 14 candidates for faded or remnant radio galaxies found in a region of the sky over Earth, studied intensely by the XMM-Newton X-ray spacecraft, called the XMM–Newton Large-Scale Structure (XMM–LSS) field.

— Robert Lea, Space.com, 21 Aug. 2026
How to Deadhead Coneflowers Deadheading coneflowers is as simple as removing the faded flower heads.

— The Spruce, The Spruce, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of faded

Adjective

His handicapping merited attention and newsletter sales, but Steele soon tired of tipping his own hand to the oddsmakers in Vegas.

— Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026
More and more young people are turning toward low- or no-tech lives, tired of the endless scroll most of us face for hours each day.

— Greta Cross, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of tired

Verb

But that agreement, which had already effectively collapsed, officially expired on Monday with no sign of a breakthrough and as tensions have escalated.

— Hanna Ziady, CNN Money, 18 Aug. 2026
If Biden had abandoned that commitment and stayed in Afghanistan, the Taliban would certainly have resumed their military offensive, and the Afghan army might have collapsed anyway in the long run.

— Foreign Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of collapsed

Verb

Prosecutors allege Shakur was killed to avenge the rapper's entourage attacking Davis' nephew, Anderson, a few hours earlier at the MGM Grand after a boxing match involving Mike Tyson.

— CBS News, CBS News, 21 Aug. 2026
Forty of those have been delivered, Skibitskiy said, and two are suspected to have been used in Radushne, in the Dnipro Region, on 30 July in an attack that killed at least four children from the same family.

— Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of killed

Adjective

Even Musk, despite his vow to take a chainsaw to the bureaucracy, seemed exhausted by the vastness of what his Department of Government Efficiency had taken on, and abandoned DOGE over a year earlier than planned.

— Jennifer Pahlka, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026
Create healthy boundaries around activities that might leave you feeling depleted or exhausted, such as unnecessary social media scrolling.

— Brittney Melton, NPR, 17 Aug. 2026

Definition of exhausted

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washed one's hands of

washed-out

washed out

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“Washed-out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/washed-out. Accessed 24 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of washed-out

adjective

verb

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