wash over

British

verb

(of an emotion) to affect (a person) suddenly and profoundly
(of an event) to have little effect on (a person)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The other kids smiled, some even laughing outright when they noticed, and I felt a hot wave of embarrassment wash over me for the second time in five minutes.

From Literature

For the rest of the bus ride, I let the voices wash over me.

From Literature

“I dunno,” I mumble, feeling a cold wave of disloyalty wash over me.

From Literature

Her words wash over me like water.

From Literature

Words wash over me, and I don’t understand most of what anyone is talking about.

From Literature

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023