washout
noun
Simple meaning
A total failure.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
wahshowtSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈwɑʃaʊt
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
slang
A total failure; a disappointment.
slang
A sporting fixture or other event that cannot be completed because of rain.
The channel or break produced by erosion of relatively soft soil by water
“It was several days after the storm before they could repair the washout and open the road.”
The erosion of a relatively soft surface by a sudden gush of water; also, a channel produced by this action.
An appliance designed to wash out the inside of something.
An act of washing or cleaning the inside of something.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Rare
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: The channel or break produced by erosion of relatively soft soil by water
Used this way, washout is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“It was several days after the storm before they could repair the washout and open the road.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use washout
- “From the house they watched the washout of their newly seeded lawn by the water.”noun
- “It was several days after the storm before they could repair the washout and open the road.”noun
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.