how to say “dishwasher” in Hebrew

מֵדִיחַ כֵּלִים

To wash dishes by hand is לשטוף כלים

, as in:

דני שוטף כלים היום.

Danny is washing dishes today.

But a dishwasher is מדיח כלים

, as in:

אולי הגיע הזמן לקנות מדיח כלים?

Perhaps the time has come to buy a dishwasher?

But if a dishwasher does the action of washing dishes, why have two different words for washing in Hebrew, when we’re talking about getting dishes clean? The simple verb לשטוף

and the הפעיל verb להדיח are synonyms, but לשטוף is the more common, mundane word, while להדיח implies a more intensive, comprehensive action – which is what a dishwasher does.