laundry

noun

laun·​dry ˈlȯn-drē 

ˈlän-

plural laundries

1

a

: a room for doing the family wash

b

: a commercial laundering establishment

2

: clothes or linens that have been or are to be laundered

Examples of laundry in a Sentence

There's a pile of dirty laundry in the laundry basket.

The patients' sheets are sent regularly to the hospital laundry.

Recent Examples on the Web

The benefits of functional movement can help with daily activities like gardening, doing laundry, or playing with kids. —Kelly Burch Published, Verywell Health, 7 Feb. 2025

Obligation – the odd errand, the office deadline, the pile of last week’s laundry – inevitably calls us elsewhere. —Danny Heitman, The Christian Science Monitor, 5 Feb. 2025

The options don’t end there: Rose notes also play well with the smell of fresh laundry and a tinge of salty sea air. —Jenny Berg, Allure, 1 Feb. 2025

Ensuring dryer vents remain clean and unblocked by lint is especially important, and not just for retaining the quality of your laundry. —Lauren Wicks, Southern Living, 31 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1577, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing laundry

• air one's dirty laundry
• dirty laundry
• do the/one's laundry
• laundry list
• load of laundry

Kids Definition

laundry

noun

laun·​dry ˈlȯn-drē 

ˈlän-

plural laundries

1

: clothes or linens that have been or are to be laundered

2

: a place where laundering is done

Etymology

from an obsolete word launder (noun) "one who washes clothes," derived from early French lavandier (or lavandiere) "a man (or woman) who washes clothes," from Latin lavandus "needing to be washed," from lavare "to wash" — related to lavatory, lavish, lotion