bathe
[verb]
Synonyms:
- swim
- wash, cleanse, rinse
- cover, flood, immerse, steep, suffuse

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Related Words: soap, douse, soak, drench, sop, souse, flush

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English Thesaurus: clean, wash, wipe, scrub, rinse, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. bathe¹ /beɪð/ verb
[Language: Old English; Origin: bathian]

1. [intransitive and transitive] especially American English to wash yourself or someone else in a bath Synonym : bath British English:
I bathed, washed my hair, and got dressed.
He bathed the children and put them to bed.

2. [intransitive] British English old-fashioned to swim in the sea, a river, or a lake:
They bathed in the lake in the moonlight.

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In everyday English, people usually say go for/have a swim rather than bathe:
They went for a swim in the lake.

3. [transitive] to wash or cover part of your body with a liquid, especially as a medical treatment:
She brought a bowl of water and began to bathe the injured arm.

4. be bathed in light/sunshine etc written an area or building that is bathed in light has light shining onto it in a way that makes it look pleasant or attractive:
The top of Pea Hill was bathed in brilliant sunshine.

5. be bathed in sweat written to be covered in sweat:
I was tired and bathed in sweat.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. bathe² noun
a bathe British English old-fashioned when you swim in the sea, a river, or a lake Synonym : swim:
They went for a bathe.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

bathe
verb
BAD: Most nights when I come home, I'm too tired to bathe.
GOOD: Most nights when I come home, I'm too tired to have a bath.

Usage Note:
In British English, bathe, have/go for a bathe and go bathing mean 'swim, play or just relax in the water' (NOT 'get clean in a bath'): 'It was the first time I'd bathed in the Red Sea.' Nowadays most people use swim, have/go for a swim or go swimming for this meaning.
In American English, bathe means 'get clean in a bath'.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Common Errors ▲

clean to remove dirt from something:
I need to clean the car.
Clean the mud off your shoes.
wash to clean something with water and usually soap:
She’s washing her hair.
There’s nowhere to wash your clothes.
wipe to clean a surface with a cloth, often a wet cloth:
Wipe the worktop when you’ve finished cooking.
scrub to wash something by rubbing it hard, especially with a brush:
They made her scrub the floor.
rinse to remove dirt from something using water, especially after washing it with soap:
Rinse your hair thoroughly after shampooing it.
cleanse formal to clean your skin, using water or a special cream:
There are many products available for cleansing your skin.
bathe /beɪð/ to clean a wound or a part of your body with water:
Bathe the cut and put a plaster on it.
do the dishes (also do the washing-up British English) to wash plates and pans after a meal:
Who’s going to help me do the dishes?
do the laundry (also do the washing British English) to wash clothes:
On Tuesdays, he does the washing.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

clean without any dirt or marks:
They need clean water to drink.
I don’t have any clean clothes.
pure water or air that is pure does not contain any dirt, pollution, or bacteria:
I breathed in the pure mountain air.
sterile /ˈsteraɪl $ -rəl/ completely clean, with no bacteria, and therefore safe for medical or scientific use:
Place a sterile bandage on the wound.
sterile needles
spotless completely clean – used mainly about rooms and clothes:
Her kitchen is always spotless.
pristine /ˈprɪstiːn/ completely clean and new-looking:
He wore a pristine white shirt.
immaculate as clean and tidy as it is possible to be:
The soldiers’ uniforms have to be immaculate.
spick and span [not before noun] informal clean and tidy, especially after having just been cleaned:
By the end of the day, the whole place was spick and span.
wash to clean something with water and usually soap:
She’s washing her hair.
There’s nowhere to wash your clothes.
wipe to clean a surface with a cloth, often a wet cloth:
Wipe the worktop when you’ve finished cooking.
scrub to wash something by rubbing it hard, especially with a brush:
They made her scrub the floor.
rinse to remove dirt from something using water, especially after washing it with soap:
Rinse your hair thoroughly after shampooing it.
cleanse formal to clean your skin, using water or a special cream:
There are many products available for cleansing your skin.
bathe /beɪð/ to clean a wound or a part of your body with water:
Bathe the cut and put a plaster on it.
do the dishes (also do the washing-up British English) to wash plates and pans after a meal:
Who’s going to help me do the dishes?
do the laundry (also do the washing British English) to wash clothes:
On Tuesdays, he does the washing.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲