spülen

See also: Spulen and spulen

German

From Middle High German spüelen, from Old High German *spuolen (attested in Old High German irspuolen (“to wash”)), from Proto-West Germanic *spōlijan.

spülen (weak, third-person singular present spült, past tense spülte, past participle gespült, auxiliary haben)

(transitive) to rinse or wash (dishes, clothes, etc.)
Bitte spülen Sie Ihre Flaschen vor dem Recycling. ― Please rinse your bottles before recycling them.
(transitive) (of waves, tides, etc.) to wash, to sweep (something off a boat, onto shore)
In der Nacht wurde eine große Menge Seegras an den Strand gespült.
A large quantity of seaweed washed onto the beach during the night.

Plötzlich hat mich eine Riesenwelle fast über Bord gespült.
Suddenly a giant wave nearly swept me overboard.
to flush (esp. the toilet)
(figuratively) to wash, to sweep, to flush
- 2010, Der Spiegel‎, number 34/2010, page 19:
  Die Mehreinnahmen, die der rasante Wirtschaftsaufschwung in die Staatskasse spülen wird, sind konjunkturell bedingt nur vorübergehend.
  Due to the nature of business cycles, the additional revenues which the rapid economic upturn will sweep into the government's coffers will only be transient.

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