bleaching powder
- noun
- /ˈbliːtʃɪŋ ˈpaʊdər/
- Specialized
:
polvo blanqueador
- We need to buy some bleaching powder for the laundry.
Examples
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You can remove tough stains on white clothes by soaking them in water with bleaching powder.
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Proper handling of bleaching powder is important, as the chemical can irritate the skin.
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The hospital used bleaching powder to disinfect the contaminated areas.
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The bleaching powder worked wonders on the stained shirt.
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To remove the stains from the shirt, we need to buy some bleaching powder.
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The hotel staff used bleaching powder to disinfect the swimming pool area.
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She carefully mixed the bleaching powder with water before applying it to the fabric.
Synonyms
49
3.3
A strong liquid used to make things white and kill germs
1
8.4
A salt used to kill germs and bleach things
1
4.9
A white chemical used to clean and kill germs in water, for example in pools
1
3.7
A chemical used to make things white or remove their color
A white powder used to bleach and kill germs
A white powder used to bleach and kill germs in water and on surfaces
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound is compositionally transparent: 'bleach' (to whiten/remove color) + 'powder' (a fine dry substance) directly yields a powder used for bleaching and disinfecting. This is a straightforward noun-noun compound following common cross-linguistic patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can infer the meaning.
Etymology
Bleaching powder comes from the simple idea of a powder that does bleaching: it was a white powder people used to 'whiten' cloth and to 'disinfect' places. That's why bleaching powder now means a white chemical used to whiten fabrics and kill germs.