bleach

1.nounB2

Definition

a powerful liquid, usually based on chlorine, that people pour onto surfaces or clothes to kill germs or to take colour out of fabric.

Example

Maya poured bleach down the kitchen sink to remove the smell.

pour bleach down [drain/sink]

Always wear gloves when you handle bleach, or your skin will burn.

handle bleach + safety warning

Common collocations

pour bleach
household bleach
diluted bleach
a bottle of bleach
smell of bleach

Synonyms

disinfectant
broader: any germ-killing liquid; not all disinfectants remove colour
chlorine
the active chemical inside most household bleach, not the product itself

Grammar Patterns

a bottle of bleach

diluted with bleach

Usage Note

Almost always uncountable. When learners want to talk about a single container, they say 'a bottle of bleach' or 'some bleach', not 'a bleach'.

Common Mistakes

I bought a bleach at the supermarket.

I bought some bleach at the supermarket.

bleach is uncountable, so use 'some' or name the container ('a bottle of bleach').

1.verbtransitive / intransitiveB2

Definition

to take the colour out of hair, cloth, or another material so that it turns paler or white, either by treating it with chemicals or by leaving it in strong sunlight; or, of the material itself, to lose its colour in this way.

Example

Lina bleached her hair blonde before the summer holiday in Greece.

bleach + body part + result colour

Years of strong sunlight had bleached the wooden chairs on the porch.

passive cause: sunlight bleaches [object]

Common collocations

bleach hair
bleach a shirt
bleached blonde
sun-bleached
bleach in the sun

Synonyms

lighten
general; can describe colour, mood, or weight, not only chemical action
fade
intransitive only; gradual loss of colour with no chemical involved
whiten
result-focused; emphasises the white outcome rather than the process

Antonyms

dye
opposite action: add colour to fabric or hair
darken
make a colour deeper rather than paler

Grammar Patterns

bleach + object

bleach + adjective (white/blonde)

Usage Note

Often used in the passive when the agent is the sun or time rather than a person ('the curtains have been bleached by the sun'). Distinguish from sense 2: this sense focuses on colour change, while sense 2 focuses on cleaning a surface.

Common Mistakes

She bleached the hair to blonde.

She bleached her hair blonde.

drop 'to' before the result colour, and use 'her' rather than 'the' for one's own hair.

2.verbtransitiveB2

Definition

to clean a surface, dish, or piece of clothing by treating it with the strong chemical called bleach, mainly to kill germs.

Example

Sarah bleached the kitchen counters every Sunday morning.

bleach + surface (cleaning routine)

The nurse bleached the floor of the operating room after the surgery.

bleach + medical surface

Common collocations

bleach the counters
bleach the toilet
bleach a chopping board
bleach the tiles

Synonyms

disinfect
broader; covers any germ-killing method, including alcohol or steam
sanitize
American spelling; emphasises a hygienic standard, often in food settings
scrub
describes the physical action; doesn't say which cleaning chemical was used

Grammar Patterns

bleach + surface/object

Usage Note

Object is almost always a surface or container that needs to be germ-free (counters, sinks, tiles, dishes). Distinguish from sense 1: here the goal is hygiene, and the colour change is only a side effect.

Common Mistakes

He bleached his hands after touching the meat.

He washed his hands with soap after touching the meat.

people wash their hands, not bleach them; bleach is far too strong for skin.

3.verbintransitiveC1

Definition

of coral in the sea, to lose its bright colour and turn pale white because the tiny plants that live inside it leave when the sea becomes too warm or too polluted.

Example

Large parts of the Great Barrier Reef have bleached during recent heatwaves.

intransitive: coral/reef bleaches

Divers reported that the coral near the island had bleached almost overnight.

perfect tense + time adverb

Common collocations

coral bleaches
bleached reef
mass bleaching
bleach during a heatwave

Synonyms

whiten
general colour change; lacks the ecological meaning
die back
broader ecological decline; bleaching is one early stage, not always death

Grammar Patterns

coral + bleach

bleached coral

Usage Note

Subject must be coral or a reef. Most common in environmental and science writing, often in the past participle 'bleached' as a modifier ('bleached coral', 'bleached reef').

Common Mistakes

The fish bleached because the water was too warm.

The coral bleached because the water was too warm.

only coral and reefs bleach in this scientific sense; fish do not.

Word family

bleached
adjectiveB2
bleaching
nounB2
unbleached
adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

All four verbs describe a colour becoming paler, but they differ in cause and focus. 'Bleach' implies a deliberate, often chemical action: 'Lina bleached her hair blonde.' It is the only one of the four that names the chemical agent so directly. 'Fade' is intransitive and gradual, with no agent in mind: 'The curtains have faded after years by the window.' 'Lighten' is the most general and can describe mood, weight, or colour: 'She lightened her hair with a milder product.' 'Whiten' focuses on the white end-state and is common with teeth, paper, and walls: 'Toothpaste that whitens your smile.' If you want to stress a strong chemical step, choose 'bleach'; for slow natural fading, 'fade'; for a softer cosmetic change, 'lighten'.

bleach ↗fade ↗lightenwhiten

Common collocations

Nouns

bleach bottle
bleach stain
bleach smell
bleach solution

Adverbs

completely bleached
almost bleached
naturally bleached

Phrases

a splash of bleach
diluted bleach
household bleach
sun-bleached wood

Prepositions

bleach with [chemical]
bleach in the sun
bleach to [colour]

Etymology

Proto-GermanicOld EnglishMiddle EnglishModern English

'Bleach' comes from the Old English verb 'blǣcan', meaning to make pale, which is related to the adjective 'blǣc' meaning shining or white. The same root gave English the word 'bleak'. The noun sense, naming the chemical product, is a later development from the verb and only became common in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, when chlorine-based bleaching agents were industrialised.

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bleach

bleach — noun

1. a powerful liquid, usually based on chlorine, that people pour onto surfaces or

Grammar Patterns

Usage Note

Common Mistakes

bleach — verb

1. to take the colour out of hair, cloth, or another material so that it turns pale

Grammar Patterns

Usage Note

Common Mistakes

2. to clean a surface, dish, or piece of clothing by treating it with the strong ch

Grammar Patterns

Usage Note

Common Mistakes

3. of coral in the sea, to lose its bright colour and turn pale white because the t

Grammar Patterns

Usage Note

Common Mistakes

Word family

Synonym discussion

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

Prepositions

Etymology

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