sponge

Everyday

1. A sponge is a soft thing full of holes that soaks up water, used for washing or cleaning. tree →
2. A sponge is a simple sea animal that lives fixed to rocks and has a body full of holes. tree →
3. A sponge or sponge cake is a light, soft cake. tree →
4. To sponge something is to wipe or clean it with a wet sponge. tree →
5. To sponge off someone means to keep taking money or food from them without giving back (informal). tree →

In the lessons

In science, a sponge shows absorbency: it soaks up water because of its many holes. In nature lessons, sea sponges are animals, not plants. In everyday life, people wash cars and dishes with a sponge, and eat Victoria sponge cake. Phrases: «soak up like a sponge» (learn quickly), «sponge bath».

Examples

• Wipe the table with a damp sponge. tree →
• The sponge soaked up all the spilled juice. tree →
• Sea sponges are animals that live on the ocean floor. tree →
• Grandma baked a jam sponge for tea. tree →
• She sponged the mud off her coat. tree →
• Little children soak up new words like a sponge. tree →
• We tested which material absorbs most water, and the sponge won. tree →
• The angry Merchant immediately turned about and drove the Ass back to the seashore, where he loaded him with two great baskets of sponges. tree →

Note

Countable noun; regular verb (sponged). Spelled with «o» but said «spunj». A sea sponge is an animal even though it does not move. In experiments, weigh the sponge before and after soaking: the difference is the water it holds.