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spăla

to wash /spəˈla/

verb#1728 most common

Also: to launder, to clean (with water)

Example sentences

Eu spăl vasele.
I wash the dishes.
Ea spală mașina în fiecare weekend.
She washes the car every weekend.
Trebuie să spălăm rufele înainte de plecare.
We need to wash the clothes before we leave.
Mi-am spălat mâinile înainte de masă.
I washed my hands before the meal.
Dacă ai fi spălat vasele aseară, bucătăria ar fi curată acum.
If you had washed the dishes last night, the kitchen would be clean now.
Se spăla pe mâini cu meticulozitate ori de câte ori se întorcea din spital, ca și cum ar fi vrut să șteargă orice urmă a zilei.
He washed his hands meticulously every time he came back from the hospital, as if he wanted to erase every trace of the day.

Conjugation

Present ActiveSimple Past ActiveSimple Future Active
1sgspălspălaivoi spăla
2sgspelispălașivei spăla
3sgspalăspălăva spăla
1plspălămspălarămvom spăla
2plspălațispălarățiveți spăla
3plspalăspălarăvor spăla

Word family

spălarewashing (the act)
spălatwashed, clean
spălătorone who washes; also a washbasin or sink
spălătorielaundry, laundromat
nespălatunwashed

Etymology

Romanian "spăla" descends from Latin, most likely from "expilare," a verb that originally meant to strip bare or plunder. Over time its sense narrowed to the physical act of stripping something clean with water, which became "to wash." This is an unusual case: unlike most Romance languages, Romanian did not keep a reflex of Latin "lavare" for this everyday verb.

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