as in rinsing
to pour liquid over or through in order to cleanse
if you get the chemical in your eye, irrigate the eye thoroughly with water
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Recent Examples of irrigating
Change your watering practices if needed, and never mow right after a rain or irrigating the lawn.
—
Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 24 Apr. 2026
Kunyu City, in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of northwest China, hosts huge sprinklers that are irrigating over 1,317 acres (533 hectares) of winter wheat fields on the southern edge of the Taklamakan Desert.
—Leonard David, Space.com, 23 Apr. 2026
This new statute requires various property owners, including HOAs, to either remove nonfunctional turf or begin irrigating it with reclaimed water.
—Kelly G. Richardson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Apr. 2026
This new statute requires various property owners, including HOAs, to either remove nonfunctional turf or begin irrigating it with reclaimed water.
—Kelly G. Richardson, Oc Register, 17 Apr. 2026
The dam was built to control floods from the Colorado River while also irrigating the Southwest.
—Paige Moore, AZCentral.com, 23 Mar. 2026
Under the agreement, Riverview will stop irrigating 2,000 acres of crops in phases within 12 years.
—Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026
As images reach us in fragments, sound weaves a continuity from off-screen to on-screen, carrying the emotion through the film and irrigating the streams of images, like water flowing.
—Cátia Rodrigues, Variety, 16 Aug. 2025
Thirsty data That Lake Mead’s worth of water that has disappeared from beneath the lower Colorado basin has gone largely to irrigating alfalfa and other food for cows, much of which is exported.
—Mark Gongloff, Mercury News, 13 Aug. 2025
Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 24 Apr. 2026
Kunyu City, in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of northwest China, hosts huge sprinklers that are irrigating over 1,317 acres (533 hectares) of winter wheat fields on the southern edge of the Taklamakan Desert.
—Leonard David, Space.com, 23 Apr. 2026
This new statute requires various property owners, including HOAs, to either remove nonfunctional turf or begin irrigating it with reclaimed water.
—Kelly G. Richardson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Apr. 2026
This new statute requires various property owners, including HOAs, to either remove nonfunctional turf or begin irrigating it with reclaimed water.
—Kelly G. Richardson, Oc Register, 17 Apr. 2026
The dam was built to control floods from the Colorado River while also irrigating the Southwest.
—Paige Moore, AZCentral.com, 23 Mar. 2026
Under the agreement, Riverview will stop irrigating 2,000 acres of crops in phases within 12 years.
—Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026
As images reach us in fragments, sound weaves a continuity from off-screen to on-screen, carrying the emotion through the film and irrigating the streams of images, like water flowing.
—Cátia Rodrigues, Variety, 16 Aug. 2025
Thirsty data That Lake Mead’s worth of water that has disappeared from beneath the lower Colorado basin has gone largely to irrigating alfalfa and other food for cows, much of which is exported.
—Mark Gongloff, Mercury News, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for irrigating
Verb
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Removing fallen leaves and rinsing away dirt prevents excess nutrients from collecting in the water.—
Jessica Safavimehr,
Southern Living,
12 May 2026
-
Start by rinsing the vinyl siding with the garden hose and attached spray nozzle.—
Timothy Dale,
Better Homes & Gardens,
12 May 2026
Verb
-
This contains a sink, a flushing toilet, and a bathtub/shower (not pictured), which is still a rare luxury in a tiny house.—
Adam Williams
May 18,
New Atlas,
18 May 2026
-
Symptoms include flushing, itching, hives, stomach pain, diarrhea, brain fog, bone pain, and sometimes severe allergic reactions like anaphylaxis.—
Suchandrima Bhowmik,
Health,
15 May 2026
Verb
-
So, the league is washing its hands of what the Chargers or any other teams might do to troll the Patriots.—
Armando Salguero OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
15 May 2026
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Modern Perspectives on Laundry Sorting With the growing popularity of large-capacity front-loading washers in the late 1990s, consumers welcomed the possibility of washing all of the dirty laundry in the hamper at the same time.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
15 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Irrigating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/irrigating. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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