wipe

CEFRB1

/waɪp/

verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    verb

    To clean or dry something by rubbing its surface.

  2. 02

    verb

    Extra detail

    To remove by rubbing; to rub off; to obliterate; usually followed by away, off, or out.

Examples

  • Please wipe your feet on the mat.

  • Wipe the sweat from your brow.

At a glance

Sits at B1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
5
Synonyms
1

Deep Dive

verb

Extra meanings

  1. To smear (a substance) with this kind of motion.

  2. To move an object over, maintaining contact, with the intention of removing some substance from the surface. (Compare rub.)

  3. To clean (the anus, buttocks and/or genitals) after defecation or urination.

More examples

In context

  • I wiped the sweat from my brow with the back of my hand.

  • Melissa wiped her glasses with her shirt.

  • Wipe your face clean.

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

After spilling juice on the table, she used a cloth to blank it clean.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

verb

From Middle English wipen, from Old English wīpian (“to wipe, rub, cleanse”), from Proto-West Germanic *wīpōn (“to wipe”), from Proto-Indo-European *weyp- (“to twist, wind around”). Cognate with German wippen (“to bob”), Swedish veva (“to turn, wind, crank”), Gothic 𐍅𐌴𐌹𐍀𐌰𐌽 (weipan, “to wreathe, crown”), Old English swīfan (“to revolve, sweep, wend, intervene”), Sanskrit वेपते (vépate, “to tremble”). More at swivel, swift.