rinse

UK/ɹɪns/US/ɹɪns/

verbB1Common in everyday speech and writing · #5,478 of 15,258leans spoken

Other forms: rinsing, rinsed, rinses

To rinse is to wash quickly under clean running water. Rinse the plate, rinse it off, rinse and repeat.

It removes what is already loosened rather than doing the cleaning itself, which is why rinsing before the dishwasher is unnecessary and rinsing after washing is essential. As a noun, a rinse is that wash, and a colour rinse is a temporary hair treatment. Rinse and repeat, from shampoo instructions, is now used ironically for any pointless cycle. Note rinse out, and rinse off.

Definitions of rinse

1verbrinseTo wash quickly under clean running water.B1
“Rinse the rice under the tap before you cook it.”
- Said"Rinse the rice until it runs clear; it makes all the difference, I promise."
- WrittenShe rinsed the lettuce leaf by leaf, as if each one might be hiding something.
- UsedRinse under the cold tap and drain.
- ContrastRinse, not wash. Washing uses soap and time; a rinse is water and a moment. wash →
- Not thisLeaving a plate to soak is not rinsing it. Rinse is quick, and the liquid moves.
- Exchange"Did you rinse it?""Twice. There's still sand."
- SimplyRinse the apple. Then eat it.
Patternrinse + noun (rice, vegetables, your hands) · rinse under the tap · rinse off / out · a quick rinse

rinse is a quick washing.

Remember it

RINSE → wash, RINSE, repeat

It is what every shampoo bottle tells you: wash, rinse, repeat — quick clean water until the soap is gone.

Where it comes from

Old French rincier probably comes from Old Norse hreinsa, to cleanse — the same root as the German rein, clean. Rinsing has meant a quick cleaning in water for about a thousand years.

Latin
recento — to make fresh
Proto-Indo-European
*krey- — to separate, divide
Proto-Germanic
*hrainisōną — to clean, purify
Old Norse
hreinsa
fro-nor
raïncer — to rinse, cleanse
Old French
rincier
Middle English
rinsen
English, today
rinse

Built from

rencen · Middle English — to rinse

From Middle English rinsen, rincen, rencen (“to rinse”), from Old French rincier, reinser, fro-nor raïncer (“to rinse, cleanse”). Of contested origin. Possibly from Old Norse hreinsa, from Proto-Germanic hrainisōną (“to clean, purify”), from Proto-Indo-European krey- (“to separate, divide”). Alternatively from a dissimilation of recincier, from Latin recento (“to make fresh”). Cognate with French rincer. From the Germanic verb are Danish rense, Norwegian rense, Swedish rensa (all “to clean”), Old High German reinisōn (“to clean, purify, atone”). It is related to German rein (“pure”), Gothic 𐌷𐍂𐌰𐌹𐌽𐍃 (“clean”), and riddle#Etymology 2. The Latin verb is related to recent.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Definitions of rinse

1verbrinseTo wash quickly under clean running water.B1

“Rinse the rice under the tap before you cook it.”

Said"Rinse the rice until it runs clear; it makes all the difference, I promise."
WrittenShe rinsed the lettuce leaf by leaf, as if each one might be hiding something.
UsedRinse under the cold tap and drain.
ContrastRinse, not wash. Washing uses soap and time; a rinse is water and a moment. wash →
Not thisLeaving a plate to soak is not rinsing it. Rinse is quick, and the liquid moves.
Exchange"Did you rinse it?""Twice. There's still sand."
SimplyRinse the apple. Then eat it.

Patternrinse + noun (rice, vegetables, your hands) · rinse under the tap · rinse off / out · a quick rinse

rinse is a quick washing.