washing-out 1 of 2

adjective

as in failing

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washing out

2 of 2

verb

present participle of wash out
1
as in collapsing
to be unsuccessful most of the participants in the tough training program washed out

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bleaching
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
3
as in wearing
to use up all the physical energy of that last illness washed the child out completely

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in rinsing
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 washing-out
Verb
What concealer lips and anti-blush actually look like Concealer lips is the technique of washing out your natural lip color for a pale, neutral mouth. — Ashley Lynch, Charlotte Observer, 3 Nov. 2026 Late Sunday, 15 waterways across northern Arizona and southwestern Colorado either reached or were forecast to reach major flood stage, triggering evacuations and washing out roads. — Washington Post, 2 Nov. 2026 Even in blazing sunlight, the screen cuts right through the glare without washing out. — Kimberly Gedeon, PC Magazine, 30 Sep. 2026 The intense lunar spotlight casts significant glare across the cluster, heavily washing out its faint blue reflection nebulosity. — Daisy Dobrijevic, Space.com, 30 Sep. 2026 Many astronomers concluded that big black holes dotted the universe, washing out the light of the stars in their host galaxies. — Quanta Magazine, 14 Sep. 2026 The scalp scrubs that made our final list lathered well and did a good job of washing out fully, no matter the size of the exfoliating particles. — Brigitt Earley, Glamour, 14 Sep. 2026 Rain postponed the start of play, washing out the entire morning session and much of the second. — ABC News, 16 Aug. 2026 The area has already be hit hard, with floodwaters washing out roads and causing evacuation of homes. — Jen Guadarrama, IndyStar, 13 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for washing-out
  1. failing
  2. collapsing
  3. bleaching
  4. wearing
  5. rinsing
  6. folding
  7. striking out
  8. fading
Adjective
  • The World Bank, International Monetary Fund and International Criminal Court, which all got failing grades in last year's survey, saw the biggest gains.
    — Andrea Shalal, USA Today, 16 Sep. 2026
  • The state graded the campus an F for three consecutive years, meaning two more failing grades could trigger an intervention.
    — Noah Alcala Bach, San Antonio Express-News, 1 Jan. 2026
Definition of failing
Verb
  • Your skeleton has a demanding day job, pumping out fresh new blood cells and serving as a mineral bank for calcium, not to mention keeping your head up and preventing your organs from collapsing into a disappointing puddle.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 6 Nov. 2026
  • The episode moves through the housing crash by following a chain of people relevant to the market collapsing.
    — Cooper Katz McKim, NPR, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of collapsing
Verb
  • But their research findings could open the door to a new intervention to help corals recover from bleaching events.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The researchers first treated the cotton with sodium dithionite, a reducing agent, before bleaching it with hydrogen peroxide under alkaline conditions.
    — Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of bleaching
Verb
  • In the photo, Ever is wearing black mascara that highlights her blue-green eyes, the spitting image of her mother’s, and glossy pink lipstick.
    — Chanel Vargas, InStyle, 6 Nov. 2026
  • Our short list shapes up with a 200-hp power cruiser wearing a Lotus badge, a five-cylinder Puch moped, and an eight-cylinder, 1,000cc two-stroke motorcycle.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of wearing
Verb
  • As a start, Mena recommends waiting at least 48 hours before washing your hair, incorporating a sulfate-free, color-safe shampoo on wash days, and always rinsing with cool to lukewarm water.
    — Jennifer Hussein, Allure, 1 Nov. 2026
  • Apply the mask, then leave it on for five minutes before rinsing off.
    — Lauren Valenti, Vogue, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of rinsing
Adjective
  • Motorola is patching a hole in its US lineup with a non-folding flagship phone, but the pricing puts this device dangerously close to the company’s expensive tablet-style foldable.
    — Ryan Whitwam, ArsTechnica, 5 Nov. 2026
  • Similar to the Huawei Pura X View that launched in China in August, the new Coolpad Cool X Wide has a much wider screen than what’s typically seen in non-folding phones.
    — Andrew Liszewski, The Verge, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of folding
Verb
  • Then there was Cole two years ago, making the same 33 starts that Schlittler just did, winning one more game than Schlittler did, striking out 222 batters in 209 innings pitched.
    — Mike Lupica, New York Daily News, 11 Nov. 2026
  • He was picked for the All-Star team and faced one batter, striking out Carl Yastrzemski for the final out in the NL's 1-0 win at Houston's Astrodome.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of striking out
Verb
  • Very faint variable stars changing their brightness and then fading back into obscurity, for example, might also explain either or both points.
    — Phil Plait, Scientific American, 6 Nov. 2026
  • Many ferns naturally turn yellow before fading to brown in the fall as the plant starts to enter dormancy.
    — The Spruce, The Spruce, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of fading

Browse Nearby Words

washing one's hands of
washing-out
washing out
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Cite this Entry

“Washing-out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/washing-out. Accessed 13 Nov. 2026.

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