Standard Lemma guide

greenwash

noun · verb · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈɡɹiːnwɒʃ/
  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A false or misleading picture of environmental friendliness used to conceal or obscure damaging activities.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: greenwashing

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To portray with a false or misleading image of environmental friendliness so as to conceal or obscure damaging activities.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive, transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Blend of green (“environmentally friendly”) + whitewash (or green + -wash), coined by Jay Westerveld in 1986.

Across languages

Translations

15 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 漂綠 /漂绿 (piǎolǜ) — misleading picture of environmental friendliness
  • Danish: grønvaskning — misleading picture of environmental friendliness
  • Finnish: viherpesu — misleading picture of environmental friendliness
  • French: écoblanchiment — misleading picture of environmental friendliness
  • Japanese: グリーンウォッシング (gurīnwosshingu) — misleading picture of environmental friendliness
  • Korean: 그린워싱 (geurinwosing) — misleading picture of environmental friendliness
  • Spanish: lavado verde — misleading picture of environmental friendliness
  • Spanish: lavado verde de imagen — misleading picture of environmental friendliness
  • Spanish: greenwashing — misleading picture of environmental friendliness
  • Swedish: grönmålning — misleading picture of environmental friendliness
  • Chinese Mandarin: 漂綠 /漂绿 (piǎolǜ) — to disseminate such information
  • Danish: grønvaske — to disseminate such information
  • Finnish: viherpestä — to disseminate such information
  • Hungarian: zöldnek tüntet fel / álcáz — to disseminate such information
  • Swedish: grönmåla — to disseminate such information