A dishwasher is a machine that washes dishes automatically using jets of hot, soapy water. You load dirty plates, bowls, cups, and silverware into racks inside the machine, add special dishwasher detergent, close the door, and press start. About an hour later, everything comes out clean and hot.

Before dishwashers became common in the 1970s, someone in every household had the job of washing dishes by hand after every meal, which could take 30 minutes or more each day. The invention of the dishwasher freed up enormous amounts of time for families. Modern dishwashers also use less water than washing by hand, even though it might not seem that way.

The word can also refer to a person whose job is washing dishes, usually in a restaurant. A dishwasher in a busy restaurant might clean hundreds of plates, glasses, and pots during a dinner shift. Many successful chefs and restaurant owners started their careers as dishwashers, learning the restaurant business from the ground up.