Antonyms for bleach


Grammar : Verb
Spell : bleech
Phonetic Transcription : blitʃ


Definition of bleach

Origin :
  • Old English blæcan "bleach, whiten," from Proto-Germanic *blaikjan "to make white" (cf. Old Saxon blek, Old Norse bleikr, Dutch bleek, Old High German bleih, German bleich "pale;" Old Norse bleikja, Dutch bleken, German bleichen "to bleach"), from PIE root *bhel- (1) "to shine, flash, burn" (cf. Sanskrit bhrajate "shines;" Greek phlegein "to burn;" Latin flamma "flame," fulmen "lightning," fulgere "to shine, flash," flagrare "to burn;" Old Church Slavonic belu "white;" Lithuanian balnas "pale").
  • The same root probably produced black; perhaps because both black and white are colorless, or because both are associated with burning. Cf. Old English scimian, related to the source of shine (n.), meaning both "to shine" and "to dim, grow dusky, grow dark." Related: Bleached; bleaching.
  • verb whiten
Example sentences :
  • If ever time could bleach his own soul and conciliate hers, what, what was to become of Aphrodite?
  • Extract from : « The Young Duke » by Benjamin Disraeli
  • She liked them to bleach on the line, it was almost as good as the grass.
  • Extract from : « A Little Girl in Old Salem » by Amanda Minnie Douglas
  • The first of these is the bleach, or oxidizing mixture of bromide and ferricyanide.
  • Extract from : « Bromide Printing and Enlarging » by John A. Tennant
  • "Lay them on the grass to bleach," said Daisy, with an air of experience.
  • Extract from : « Little Men » by Louisa May Alcott
  • Kiss ye me till I be white, an' that will be an ill web to bleach.
  • Extract from : « The Proverbs of Scotland » by Alexander Hislop
  • The third said: "I will enable him to bleach all the linen he has woven in one night."
  • Extract from : « Italian Popular Tales » by Thomas Frederick Crane
  • Besides this two other kinds of bleach are distinguished in the trade.
  • Extract from : « The Dyeing of Cotton Fabrics » by Franklin Beech
  • At last nothing is left of it but the bare bones to bleach in the sun.
  • Extract from : « The Nursery, April 1877, Vol. XXI. No. 4 » by Various
  • The desert is wide and there is room and to spare to starve in it, and for your bones to bleach there.
  • Extract from : « Homo Sum, Complete » by Georg Ebers
  • "He is not apt to leave 'em to bleach their bones," said Bill Saxby.
  • Extract from : « Blackbeard: Buccaneer » by Ralph D. Paine

Synonyms for bleach

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019