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Sponging - 3 dictionary results
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sponge

  [spuhnj] noun, verb, sponged, spong⋅ing.
Use Sponging in a Sentence
–noun
1. any aquatic, chiefly marine animal of the phylum Porifera, having a porous structure and usually a horny, siliceous or calcareous internal skeleton or framework, occurring in large, sessile colonies.
2. the light, yielding, porous, fibrous skeleton or framework of certain animals or colonies of this group, esp. of the genera Spongia and Hippospongia, from which the living matter has been removed, characterized by readily absorbing water and becoming soft when wet while retaining toughness: used in bathing, in wiping or cleaning surfaces, etc.
3. any of various other similar substances, often porous rubber or cellulose, used for washing or cleaning.
4. sponge bath.
5. a person or thing that absorbs something freely: His mind is a sponge gathering historical data.
6. a person who persistently borrows from or lives at the expense of others; sponger; parasite.
7. Informal. a drunkard.
8. Metallurgy. a porous mass of metallic particles, as of platinum, obtained by the reduction of an oxide or purified compound at a temperature below the melting point.
9. Surgery. a sterile surgical dressing of absorbent material, usually cotton gauze, for wiping or absorbing pus, blood, or other fluids during a surgical operation.
10. Cookery.
a. dough raised with yeast, esp. before kneading, as for bread.
b. a light, sweet pudding of a porous texture, made with gelatin, eggs, fruit juice or other flavoring material, etc.
11. a disposable piece of polyurethane foam impregnated with a spermicide for insertion into the vagina as a contraceptive.
–verb (used with object)
12. to wipe or rub with or as with a wet sponge, as to moisten or clean.
13. to remove with or as with a wet sponge (usually fol. by off, away, etc.).
14. to wipe out or efface with or as with a sponge (often fol. by out).
15. to take up or absorb with or as with a sponge (often fol. by up): to sponge up water.
16. to borrow, use, or obtain by imposing on another's good nature, friendship, hospitality, or the like: He sponged 40 bucks from his friend and went to the city.
17. Ceramics. to decorate (a ceramic object) by dabbing at it with a sponge soaked with color.
–verb (used without object)
18. to take in or soak up liquid by absorption.
19. to gather sponges.
20. to live at the expense of others (often fol. by on or off): He came back home and sponged off his family for a while.
—Idiom
21. throw in the sponge, Informal. to concede defeat; yield; give up: The early election returns were heavily against him, but he wasn't ready to throw in the sponge.
Origin:
bef. 1000; (n.) ME, OE < L spongia, spongea < Gk spongi; (v.) ME spongen to clean with a sponge, deriv. of the n.

Related forms:
spongeless, adjective
spongelike, adjective
spong⋅ing⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
6. leech. 12. wash.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Sponging
sponge   (spŭnj)   
n.  
    1. Any of numerous aquatic, chiefly marine invertebrate animals of the phylum Porifera, characteristically having a porous skeleton composed of fibrous material or siliceous or calcareous spicules and often forming irregularly shaped colonies attached to an underwater surface.
    2. The light, fibrous, flexible, absorbent skeleton of certain of these organisms, used for bathing, cleaning, and other purposes.
    3. Porous plastics, rubber, cellulose, or other material, similar in absorbency to this skeleton and used for the same purposes.
    4. Metal in a porous, brittle form, as after the removal of other metals in processing, used as a raw material in manufacturing.
    5. Informal A glutton.
    6. Slang A drunkard.
    1. Porous plastics, rubber, cellulose, or other material, similar in absorbency to this skeleton and used for the same purposes.
    2. Metal in a porous, brittle form, as after the removal of other metals in processing, used as a raw material in manufacturing.
    3. Informal A glutton.
    4. Slang A drunkard.
  3. A gauze pad used to absorb blood and other fluids, as in surgery or the dressing of a wound.
  4. A small absorbent contraceptive pad that contains a spermicide and is placed against the cervix of the uterus before sexual intercourse.
  5. Dough that has been or is being leavened.
  6. A light cake, such as sponge cake.
  7. A sponge bath.
  8. One who habitually depends on others for one's own maintenance.
    1. Informal A glutton.
    2. Slang A drunkard.
v.   sponged, spong·ing, spong·es

v.   tr.
  1. To moisten, wipe, or clean with or as if with a sponge: sponge off the table.
  2. To wipe out; erase.
  3. To absorb with or as if with a sponge: sponge up the mess.
  4. Informal To obtain free: sponge a meal.
v.   intr.
  1. To fish for sponges.
  2. Informal To live by relying on the generosity of others: sponged off her parents.

[Middle English, from Old English, from Latin spongia, from Greek spongiā, from spongos.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Sponging

Spon"ging\, a. & n. from Sponge, v.

Sponging house (Eng. Law), a bailiff's or other house in which debtors are put before being taken to jail, or until they compromise with their creditors. At these houses extortionate charges are commonly made for food, lodging, etc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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