sponge

B1 Topic:Materials & Substances

US /spʌnd͡ʒ/ See IPA manual

Freq #8856

Meanings

1

noun
A soft, porous material used for washing or soaking up liquid.

She wiped the table clean with a damp sponge.
2

verb
To clean, wipe, or soak up something with a sponge.

The nurse gently sponged the patient's forehead.
3

verb
To get money or things from others without giving anything back.

He's been sponging off his friends for months.
4

noun
A person who learns or absorbs new things very quickly.

Young children are like sponges, soaking up languages with ease.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Multiword verbs with sponge

sponge off Phrasal verb B1

to remove dirt or liquid by wiping with a sponge

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a soft, porous material... bath sponge

3 verb · to get money or things from... scroungeblag

4 noun · a person who learns or... quick study

Word family

Forms spongedspongessponging

Derived forms bacteriospongecalcispongecyanospongecytospongedemospongedispongemicrospongenanospongerespongesclerospongesponge-brainedspongeable

Related forms foam

Appears in

Phrases (2)

See all

sponge mop
a mop whose cleaning head is made from absorbent sponge

Noun + noun
sponge off
to remove dirt or liquid by wiping with a sponge

Verb + adverb

Etymology

From Middle English sponge, from Old English spunge, taken from Latin spongia, from Ancient Greek σπογγιά (spongiá), from σπόγγος (spóngos).

sponge Middle English spunge Old English spongia Latin σπογγιά Ancient Greek

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Materials & Substances

External links

# sponge

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** /spʌnd͡ʒ/
**Frequency rank:** 8856

## Meanings
1. A soft, porous material used for washing or soaking up liquid.
2. To clean, wipe, or soak up something with a sponge.
3. To get money or things from others without giving anything back.
4. A person who learns or absorbs new things very quickly.

## Examples
- She wiped the table clean with a damp sponge.
- The nurse gently sponged the patient's forehead.
- He's been sponging off his friends for months.
- Young children are like sponges, soaking up languages with ease.

## Derived Forms
- bacteriosponge
- calcisponge
- cyanosponge
- cytosponge
- demosponge
- disponge
- microsponge
- nanosponge
- responge
- sclerosponge
- sponge-brained
- spongeable

## Related Forms
- foam

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: sponge
- Root: spunge
- Root: spongia
- Root: σπογγιά

## Etymology
From Middle English sponge, from Old English spunge, taken from Latin spongia, from Ancient Greek σπογγιά (spongiá), from σπόγγος (spóngos).

## AI Etymology
Sponge is from Middle English sponge, from Old English spunge, taken from Latin spongia, from Ancient Greek σπογγιά (spongiá), from σπόγγος (spóngos). Important forms in the word's history include Middle English sponge, Old English spunge, Latin spongia, Ancient Greek σπογγιά. In current use it includes senses such as A soft, porous material used for washing or soaking up liquid and To clean, wipe, or soak up something with a sponge.

## Topics
- Materials & Substances

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