What does lavar in Spanish mean?

What is the meaning of the word lavar in Spanish? The article explains the full meaning, pronunciation along with bilingual examples and instructions on how to use lavar in Spanish.

The word lavar in Spanish means wash, launder, wash up, wash away, wash, machine wash, launder money, wash the car, brainwash, cold wash, dryclean, wash the dishes, do the dishes, washboard. To learn more, please see the details below.

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Meaning of the word lavar

wash, launder

verbo transitivo (limpiar)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Siempre lavo mi ropa fina a mano, con agua fría y un detergente suave.
I always wash my delicates by hand with cold water and a soft detergent.

wash up

verbo pronominal (asearse)

(phrasal verb, intransitive: Verb with adverb(s) or preposition(s), having special meaning and not taking direct object--for example, "make up" [=reconcile]: "After they fought, they made up.")
Anda y lávate antes de sentarte a la mesa.
Go and wash up before sitting down at the table.

wash away

verbo transitivo (purificar, borrar una falta)

(phrasal verb, transitive, separable: Verb with adverb(s) or preposition(s), having special meaning, divisible--for example, "call off" [=cancel], "call the game off," "call off the game.")
Para los católicos el propósito del bautismo es lavar los pecados.
The purpose of baptism in the Catholic church is to wash away a person's sins.

wash

verbo transitivo (separar minerales)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Lavar minerales consiste en separar por gravedad el metal de la roca empleando grandes cantidades de agua.
Washing minerals involves separating metal and rock with gravity and uses large quantities of water.

machine wash

locución verbal (usar lavadora)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Puedes lavar a máquina la manta.
You can machine wash the blanket.

launder money

locución verbal (blanquear capital)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Los investigadores determinaron que la empresa de alquiler de autos en realidad lavaba dinero.
The investigators determined that the rental car company had in fact been laundering money.

wash the car

locución verbal (lavar el coche)

Juan lava el carro todos los sábados.
Juan washes the car every Saturday.

brainwash

locución verbal (figurado (a alguien: manipular)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Le lavó el cerebro a su tía para que le prestara el dinero.
He brainwashed his aunt into lending him the money.

cold wash

locución verbal (con agua fría)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Esta prenda se debe lavar en frío.

dryclean

locución verbal (sin usar agua)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
En las instrucciones del edredón dice "lavar en seco".
The quilt's instructions say to "dry clean."

wash the dishes, do the dishes

locución verbal (fregar la vajilla)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Gabriel lavó los platos después de comer.
Gabriel washed the dishes after lunch.

washboard

nombre femenino (para lavar ropa a mano)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
La lavadora desplazó a la tabla de lavar.

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So now that you know more about the meaning of lavar in Spanish, you can learn how to use them through selected examples and how to read them. And remember to learn the related words that we suggest. Our website is constantly updating with new words and new examples so you can look up the meanings of other words you don't know in Spanish.

Do you know about Spanish

Spanish (español), also known as Castilla, is a language of the Iberian-Romance group of the Romance languages, and the 4th most common language in the world according to Some sources, while others list it as a 2nd or 3rd most common language. It is the mother tongue of about 352 million people, and is spoken by 417 million people when adding its speakers as a language. sub (estimated in 1999). Spanish and Portuguese have very similar grammar and vocabulary; The number of similar vocabulary of these two languages is up to 89%. Spanish is the primary language of 20 countries around the world. It is estimated that the total number of speakers of Spanish is between 470 and 500 million, making it the second most widely spoken language in the world by number of native speakers.