Third person singular or plural form of the verb 'bleach,' meaning to remove color from something using chemical treatment.
From Old English 'blæcan,' related to 'blæc' (pale, shiny). The verb form evolved from the adjective describing the pale result of bleaching.
Bleach is one of our oldest chemical processes—ancient Egyptians used sunlight and plant materials to bleach linen thousands of years before we had actual bleach chemicals!
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