Adjacent Words

Wipe definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

WIPE, v.t.
1. To rub something soft for cleaning; to clean by rubbing; as, to wipe the hands or face with a towel. Luke 7.
2. To strike off gently.
Some natral tears they droppd, but wipd them soon.
3. To cleanse from evil practices or abuses; to overturn and destroy what is foul and hateful.
I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish. 2 Kings 21.
4. To cheat; to defraud.
To wipe away, to cleanse by rubbing or tersion; as, to wipe away a stain or reproach.
To wipe off, to clear away. Wipe off this foul stain; wipe off the dust.
To wipe out, to efface; to obliterate. Wipe out the blot.
WIPE, n.
1. The act of rubbing for the purpose of cleaning.
2. A blow; a stroke.
3. A gibe; a jeer; a severe sarcasm.
4. A bird.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the act of rubbing or wiping; "he gave the hood a quick rub" [syn: rub, wipe] v
1: rub with a circular motion; "wipe the blackboard"; "He passed his hands over the soft cloth" [syn: wipe, pass over]

Merriam Webster's

I. verb (wiped; wiping) Etymology: Middle English wipen, from Old English w?pian; akin to Old High German w?fan to wind around, Latin vibrare to brandish, and probably to Old Norse veipa to be in movement, Sanskrit vepate it trembles Date: before 12th century transitive verb 1. a. to rub with or as if with something soft for cleaning b. to clean or dry by rubbing c. to draw, pass, or move for or as if for rubbing or cleaning <wiped his hand across his brow> 2. a. to remove by or as if by rubbing <wipe the spots off the glass> b. to expunge completely <wipe from memory the gruesome scenes — American Guide Series: Delaware> 3. to spread by or as if by wiping intransitive verb to make a motion of or as if of wiping something II. noun Date: 1550 1. a. blow, strike b. jeer, gibe 2. a. an act or instance of wiping b. a transition from one scene or picture to another (as in movies or television) made by a line moving across the screen 3. something (as a towel) used for wiping

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v.tr. 1 clean or dry the surface of by rubbing with the hands or a cloth etc. 2 rub (a cloth) over a surface. 3 spread (a liquid etc.) over a surface by rubbing. 4 (often foll. by away, off, etc.) a clear or remove by wiping (wiped the mess off the table; wipe away your tears). b remove or eliminate completely (the village was wiped off the map). 5 a erase (data, a recording, etc., from a magnetic medium). b erase data from (the medium). 6 Austral. & NZ sl. reject or dismiss (a person or idea). --n. 1 an act of wiping (give the floor a wipe). 2 a piece of disposable absorbent cloth, usu. treated with a cleansing agent, for wiping something clean (antiseptic wipes). Phrases and idioms: wipe down clean (esp. a vertical surface) by wiping. wipe a person's eye colloq. get the better of a person. wipe the floor with colloq. inflict a humiliating defeat on. wipe off annul (a debt etc.). wipe out 1 a destroy, annihilate (the whole population was wiped out). b obliterate (wiped it out of my memory). 2 sl. murder. 3 clean the inside of. 4 avenge (an insult etc.). wipe-out n. 1 the obliteration of one radio signal by another. 2 an instance of destruction or annihilation. 3 sl. a fall from a surfboard. wipe the slate clean see SLATE. wipe up 1 Brit. dry (dishes etc.). 2 take up (a liquid etc.) by wiping. Derivatives: wipeable adj. Etymology: OE wipian: cf. OHG wifan wind round, Goth. weipan crown: rel. to WHIP

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Wipe Wipe, n. [Cf. Sw. vipa, Dan. vibe, the lapwing.] (Zo["o]l.) The lapwing. [Prov. Eng.]

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Wipe Wipe, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Wiped; p. pr. & vb. n. Wiping.] [OE. vipen, AS. w[=i]pian; cf. LG. wiep a wisp of straw, Sw. vepa to wrap up, to cuddle one's self up, vepa a blanket; perhaps akin to E. whip.] 1. To rub with something soft for cleaning; to clean or dry by rubbing; as, to wipe the hands or face with a towel. Let me wipe thy face. --Shak. I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it, and turning it upside down. --2 Kings xxi. 13. 2. To remove by rubbing; to rub off; to obliterate; -- usually followed by away, off or out. Also used figuratively. ``To wipe out our ingratitude.'' --Shak. Some natural tears they dropped, but wiped them soon. --Milton. 3. To cheat; to defraud; to trick; -- usually followed by out. [Obs.] --Spenser. If they by coveyne [covin] or gile be wiped beside their goods. --Robynson (More's Utopia) To wipe a joint (Plumbing), to make a joint, as between pieces of lead pipe, by surrounding the junction with a mass of solder, applied in a plastic condition by means of a rag with which the solder is shaped by rubbing. To wipe the nose of, to cheat. [Old Slang]

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Wipe Wipe, n. 1. Act of rubbing, esp. in order to clean. 2. A blow; a stroke; a hit; a swipe. [Low] 3. A gibe; a jeer; a severe sarcasm. --Swift. 4. A handkerchief. [Thieves' Cant or Slang] 5. Stain; brand. [Obs.] ``Slavish wipe.'' --Shak.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(wipes, wiping, wiped) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. If you wipe something, you rub its surface to remove dirt or liquid from it. I'll just wipe the table... When he had finished washing he began to wipe the basin clean... Lainey wiped her hands on the towel. VERB: V n, V n with adj, V n on n • Wipe is also a noun. She gave the table a quick wipe and disappeared behind the counter. N-COUNT: usu sing 2. If you wipe dirt or liquid from something, you remove it, for example by using a cloth or your hand. Gleb wiped the sweat from his face... He shook his head and wiped his tears with a tissue. VERB: V n prep, V n 3. A wipe is a small moist cloth for cleaning things and is designed to be used only once. ...antiseptic wipes. N-COUNT 4. to wipe the floor with someone: see floor to wipe the slate clean: see slate

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. a. Rub (as with a cloth, in order to clean or dry). II. n. 1. Wiping. 2. (Colloq.) Blow, stroke, hit. 3. Sneer, gibe, taunt, sarcasm. 4. (Ornith.) Pewit, lapwing (Vanellus cristatus).

1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue

A blow, or reproach. I'll give you a wipe on the chops. That story gave him a fine wipe. Also a handkerchief.

Moby Thesaurus

air-dry, anhydrate, bake, blackout, bleach, blocking, blot, bowdlerize, brush, burn, clean, clean out, clean up, cleanse, clear out, conk, cure, dehumidify, dehydrate, delouse, dematerialization, departure, depurate, desiccate, deterge, disappearance, disappearing, dispersion, dissipation, dissolution, dissolving, drain, dry, dry-clean, dust, dust off, eclipse, elimination, erasure, evanescence, evaporate, evaporation, expurgate, exsiccate, extinction, fadeaway, fadeout, fading, fire, freshen, going, hit, insolate, kerchief, kiln, knock, lick, lustrate, melting, mummify, occultation, parch, passing, purge, purify, rap, reform, rub, scavenge, scorch, sear, shrivel, smoke, soak up, sponge, spruce, steam-clean, sun, sun-dry, swab, swat, sweep out, sweeten, swipe, tidy, torrefy, towel, vanishing, vanishing point, weazen, whiten, wipe off, wipe out, wipe up, wither, wizen