Definition

Verb: - To remove color or pigment from something, typically through a chemical process or prolonged exposure to a light source. It describes the action of causing something to become white or much lighter.

Usage

This verb is transitive and typically used in the passive voice or with an object that is having its color removed. It often describes an unintentional or natural fading process.

Examples

Advanced Usage

• Technical/Industrial Context: The term can be used in manufacturing or textile care to describe a controlled process.
  • The factory uses a specific chemical to bleach out the raw cotton before dyeing.

Variants and Related Words

• Bleach (verb): The base form, meaning to make white or colorless.
• Bleached (adjective): Describes something that has had its color removed.
  • bleached hair, bleached wood

Synonyms

• Decolorize
• Fade
• Whiten
• Blanch

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Wash out: To cause to fade by washing. (Often implies a less complete or more accidental fading than "bleach out").
  • The red dye washed out of the new jeans.

Notes

The phrase "bleach out" emphasizes the result of the bleaching action—the removal or disappearance of color. It is often used when the original color is gone or significantly diminished.

Verb

1. remove color from
   • The sun bleached the red shirt