To slosh means to move through or splash around in liquid, making that distinctive swishing, splashing sound. When you walk through puddles after a rainstorm and hear water sloshing around in your rain boots, that's sloshing. When you carry a bucket that's too full and water sloshes over the sides with each step, you're experiencing what happens when liquid moves around inside a container.

The word captures both the sound and the movement of liquid. Picture a half-full water bottle being shaken: the water sloshes back and forth, hitting the sides with that familiar swishing noise. A washing machine sloshes clothes around in soapy water. On a boat, waves might slosh against the hull.

You can slosh through something (like mud or a flooded basement) or cause something to slosh (like orange juice in a glass you're carrying too carelessly). The word often suggests messiness or lack of control: liquids that slosh tend to spill, splash, or make things wet that weren't supposed to get wet.