bathe
bathe Lexical Profile
bathe Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To wash oneself or someone else by immersing the body in water.
"She likes to bathe in warm water infused with lavender oil after a long shift."
To soak, rinse, or wash a specific part of the body gently, especially for medical or soothing purposes.
"The nurse advised him to bathe the scraped knee with a mild saline solution twice a day."
To suffuse, envelop, or flood completely with light, warmth, or liquid.
"The late afternoon sun began to bathe the valley in a rich golden glow."
British To swim or dip in the sea, a river, or a lake for recreation.
"Tourists were warned not to bathe along that stretch of the coast due to strong currents."
• noun
British An act of swimming or immersing oneself in the sea, a river, or a lake for pleasure.
"We went down to the cove for an early morning bathe before breakfast."
Word Nuance & Usage
Do not confuse the verb 'bathe' (pronounced with a voiced 'th' and a long 'a') with the noun 'bath' (pronounced with an unvoiced 'th' and a short 'a'). In British English, 'bathe' as an intransitive verb or a noun often refers specifically to swimming in the sea or a river, whereas in American English it primarily means washing oneself in a tub.
• Rhymes for bathe
Word Origin & Etymology
Derived from Old English 'baðian', meaning to wash, warm, or foment, from the Proto-Germanic root '*batho-', which is related to the verb 'bake' through the underlying concept of warming or heating.