The Collaborative International Dictionary
Wipe \Wipe\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Wiped; p. pr. & vb. n. Wiping.] [OE. vipen, AS. w[=i]pian; cf. LG. wiep a wisp of straw, Sw. vepa to wrap up, to cuddle one's self up, vepa a blanket; perhaps akin to E. whip.]
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To rub with something soft for cleaning; to clean or dry by rubbing; as, to wipe the hands or face with a towel.
Let me wipe thy face.
--Shak.I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it, and turning it upside down.
--2 Kings xxi. 13. -
To remove by rubbing; to rub off; to obliterate; -- usually followed by away, off or out. Also used figuratively. ``To wipe out our ingratitude.''
--Shak.Some natural tears they dropped, but wiped them soon.
--Milton. -
To cheat; to defraud; to trick; -- usually followed by out. [Obs.]
--Spenser.If they by coveyne [covin] or gile be wiped beside their goods.
--Robynson (More's Utopia)To wipe a joint (Plumbing), to make a joint, as between pieces of lead pipe, by surrounding the junction with a mass of solder, applied in a plastic condition by means of a rag with which the solder is shaped by rubbing.
To wipe the nose of, to cheat. [Old Slang]