WASHOUT

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does washout mean? 

• WASHOUT (noun)
  The noun WASHOUT has 3 senses:

1. the channel or break produced by erosion of relatively soft soil by water

2. the erosive process of washing away soil or gravel by water (as from a roadway)

3. someone who is unsuccessful

  Familiarity information: WASHOUT used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• WASHOUT (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The channel or break produced by erosion of relatively soft soil by water

Classified under:

Nouns denoting two and three dimensional shapes

Context example:

it was several days after the storm before they could repair the washout and open the road

Hypernyms ("washout" is a kind of...):

channel; groove (a long narrow furrow cut either by a natural process (such as erosion) or by a tool (as e.g. a groove in a phonograph record))

Sense 2

Meaning:

The erosive process of washing away soil or gravel by water (as from a roadway)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural processes

Synonyms:

wash; washout

Context example:

from the house they watched the washout of their newly seeded lawn by the water

Hypernyms ("washout" is a kind of...):

soil erosion (the washing away of soil by the flow of water)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "washout"):

rain-wash (the washing away of soil or other loose material by rain)

Derivation:

wash out (wear or destroy by the force of water)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Someone who is unsuccessful

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

dud; flop; washout

Hypernyms ("washout" is a kind of...):

failure; loser; nonstarter; unsuccessful person (a person with a record of failing; someone who loses consistently)

Domain usage:

colloquialism (a colloquial expression; characteristic of spoken or written communication that seeks to imitate informal speech)

 Context examples 

Fluid obtained by washout of the alveolar compartment of the lung.

(Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)