Word.ws English Dictionary

wash one's mouth out

wash one's mouth out verb: to stop using bad language, or atone for doing so.

Verb

wash one's mouth out (third-person singular simple present washes one's mouth out, present participle washing one's mouth out, simple past and past participle washed one's mouth out)

  1. (figuratively, imperative, usually) To stop using bad language, or atone for doing so.
    • Wash out your mouth, your lies are gettin' rusty1970, “Funkier Than a Mosquito's Tweeter”, in Alline Bullock (lyrics), Workin’ Together, performed by Ike & Tina Turner
    • Some Tory MPs think the Queen needs to wash her mouth out.1999 November 19, “A pother of pedants”, in The Guardian
  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see wash out, mouth.
    • The foreigners content themselves with washing their hands. The Moors wash their mouths out with soap also, blowing bubbles and gargling happily.1956, Encounter, volume 6, page 30

Forms of wash one's mouth out

third-person singular presentwashes one's mouth out
present participlewashing one's mouth out
past participlewashed one's mouth out
pastwashed one's mouth out
alternative formwash out one's mouth

Origin of wash one's mouth out

From the formerly common practice of punishing children who have lied or used foul language by forcing them to wash their mouths using a cleansing substance, typically soap.

Questions about wash one's mouth out

What does wash one's mouth out mean?
Wash one's mouth out means to stop using bad language, or atone for doing so.
What part of speech is wash one's mouth out?
Wash one's mouth out is a verb.
What is the past tense of wash one's mouth out?
The past tense of wash one's mouth out is washed one's mouth out.

Words near wash one's mouth out in the dictionary

  1. wash one's brain out with soap
  2. wash one's dirty laundry in public
  3. wash one's dirty linen in public
  4. wash one's elbows
  5. wash one's hands
  6. wash one's mouth out
  7. wash oneself of
  8. wash out
  9. wash out one's mouth
  10. wash over
  11. wash room

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: wash one's mouth out (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-wash one's mouth out.wav.

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